NORTH MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. — The Ithaca College softball team split a Thursday doubleheader in the Fastpitch Dreams Spring Classic against Mount Aloysius College and Castleton University. The Bombers fell in the opener to Mount Aloysius 5–2, but impressed against Castleton, winning 6–1. The Bombers then went on to defeat the Mississippi College for Women 4–2 at the top of their doubleheader on Friday. With the split and the win, the Bombers record improved to 6–3 to open their season.
Thursday 3/16/23 Game 1: Mount Aloysius 5, Ithaca 2
The Bombers got on the board first, scoring a run to take a 1–0 lead in the opening frame. Kailey Collins reached first base due to an error by Maggie Cypher, which allowed Hudson Hassler to score.
The Mounties tied things up just as fast as the Bombers got on the board in the top of the second inning. Cypher grounded out to shortstop but hit the ball hard enough to bring Sarah Henninger home, which tied the game 1–1.
In the bottom of the fourth inning, Ithaca took the lead back at 2–1 when Allison Dell'Orto scored off of a Cynthia Ehrenfeld single.
It was all Mount Aloysius from that point on as an Ella Pearson triple brought home Cypher to tie the game in the fifth inning.
The Mounties ran away with the game after a three-run seventh inning which put them up 5–2. After Katelyn Garber reached on an error, Cypher scored for her second run of the game to put the Mounties up one. A Pearson double and a Whitney Cole single would bring in one run a piece, extending Mount Aloysius' lead to three.
Riley Piromalli allowed five runs off of eight hits in her fourth start of the year, dropping her record to 1–4.
Dell'Orto led the team with two hits and scored one run. Ehrenfeld led the Bombers will one RBI.
Thursday 3/16/23 Game 2: Ithaca 6, Castleton 1
After a 1-2-3 top of the first for Castleton, the Bombers wasted no time opening the scoring up, taking a 2–0 lead. After a Sela Scheinman double to right field, Hudson Hassler tripled, plating Scheinman and putting Ithaca on the board 1–0. An error on the throw from Castleton allowed Hassler to advance home, from third, increasing the lead to 2–0 on the same play.
The game remained 2–0 until the bottom of the third inning when Hassler hit her second triple of the game into right. Collins then walked but was able to advance to third after an error from a throw by Miranda Fish, which scored Hassler, and put the Bombers up by three. Two batters later, Collins scored on an Allison Dell'Orto groundout, which increased the Bombers lead to 4–0.
Castleton put themselves on the board in the top of the fifth inning, which cut the Ithaca's lead down to 4–1. Jess Heinrichs singled into center field, which brought Alexis Rodgers home for the Spartan's only run of the game.
Ithaca added two more runs to its lead in the sixth inning, putting them up 6–1. Following a Dell'Orto double, Tava Kasper doubled into left-center field bringing Dell'Orto home. Jessie Lopez then put herself on the stat sheet with a single of her own, driving Kasper down the third-base line to take a five-run lead.
Bella Scolaro locked things down in the seventh for the Bombers, allowing no hits and only one base runner.
Anna Cornell pitched six innings for Ithaca, only allowing one run and six hits. Cornell struck out 11 and improved her perfect record to 4–0 to start the season.
Hassler continued to swing well at the plate to start her season, going 2–3 with a team-high two RBIs. Kasper also had two hits in the game.
Friday 3/17/23 Game 1: Ithaca 4, Mississippi College for Women 2
After a scoreless first inning, the Owls got on the board first to take a 1–0 lead in the top of the second. Alyssa Newman singled, bringing Riley Phillips home all the way from second base.
The very next inning, the Owls added another run to their lead to put themselves up 2–0 over the Bombers. Madison Crosby reached base off of an error from Scheinman, allowing Lilly Harrison to score from third.
The Bombers wasted no time tying the game after falling down two runs, scoring two runs themselves on the flip side of the third inning. Hassler hit a sacrifice fly, scoring Belle de Oliveira and advancing Scheinman to third base. Collins then hit an RBI single, plating Scheinman and tying the game 2–2.
Following a quiet fourth inning for both teams, Ithaca would take their first lead of the game in the fifth. Suzie Williams scored from second base on a Dell'Orto RBI single to take a 3–2 Bomber lead.
The Bombers extended their lead to two in the bottom of the sixth off a sacrifice fly hit by Scheinman, which brought Haley Petrucci home, for the Bombers fourth and final run of the game.
Cornell continued her dominant start to the season, pitching all seven innings for the Bombers while only allowing two hits and surrendering one earned run. Cornell struck out 12 and improved her perfect record to 5–0.
Dell'Orto led the Bombers with three hits and drove in one run in the win. Scheinman, Hassler and Collins had one RBI a piece as well.
Ithaca will return to action with a doubleheader at Oneonta next Saturday. First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m.
