POST-GAME PRESS CONFERENCE

OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. – The Ithaca College softball team won in walk-off fashion on Friday afternoon to defeat MIT, 3-2, in eight innings. The win keeps the Bombers' hopes of a National Championship alive as they move forward to Saturday.
 
Ithaca goes on to play the loser of tomorrow's first game between Texas-Tyler and Illinois Wesleyan at 4 p.m. (5 p.m. ET).
 
In the bottom of the eighth inning, it was senior Allie Colleran who came up with the game winner. Freshman Gabby Laccona drew a walk and stole second to put herself in scoring position before Colleran ripped a double over the left fielder's head to bring in Laccona and advance the Bombers.
 
Ithaca struggled at the plate until the sixth inning when it strung together two hits for two runs, which tied the game.
 
Nikkey Skuraton started the rally with a single to left field and advanced to second when Alex Kimmel was hit by a pitch.
 
On the next play, Annie Cooney laid down a bunt on the first base line and beat out the throw, which pushed Emily Bloom, who was pinch running for Kimmel, to third and scored Skuraton. After Cooney stole second, Laccona drilled a single to left field, bringing in Bloom for the tying run of the game.
 
Although the Bombers worked out of several innings in which MIT put multiple runners on base, the Engineers finally broke through in the top of the fourth inning to go up 1-0.
 
Katherine Shade was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning before advancing to second on a Michelle Wist foul out. Shade then scored on a Sierra Rosenzweig single up the middle to give the Engineers the lead over IC.
 
MIT put up another run in the top of the fifth inning, starting with an Amanda Lee single through the right side. She then advanced to second on a throwing error before Pickett drew a walk to load the bases for the Engineers.
 
Shade drove in a run this time with a ground out to short stop, allowing Lee to score and giving MIT a 2-0 edge over the Bombers.
 
Colleran, Laccona and Skuraton each went 1-for-3 on the day against the Engineers. Both Colleran and Laccona also picked up a RBI in the win.
 
Junior pitcher Haley Congdon earned the win in the circle after pitching a total of 3.2 innings. Congdon, who started the game and then returned to close things out, scattered three hits, struck out two and allowed no earned runs. She moves to 14-3 on the season.
 
The Bombers improve to 34-12 overall on the season while MIT's season ends with a 38-11-1 mark.