TROY, N.Y. - The Ithaca College softball team opened the 2024 Liberty League Championship tournament on Thursday afternoon squaring off against the No. 2 seeded University of Rochester. It was a pitcher's duel throughout, but the YellowJackets ended up breaking a 1-1 tie when they scored two runs in the bottom of the sixth as IC wasn't able to respond in the seventh as it finished 3-1. The Bombers will now need to win both games on Friday to punch a ticket into the Liberty League Championship title game(s).
 
The Bombers got off to a good start with both Elise Waddington and Haley Petrucci getting on in the top of the first with each managing one-out singles. They were left stranded when Molly Broccolo was able to get Sydney Miranda to groundout.
 
Ithaca was able to score first as it was once again Waddington and Petrucci that sparked things, with both leading off the top of the fourth with back-to-back singles. Broccolo was able to get the next two batters to fly out, but Kailen Winkelblech came up clutch when she lined a single to center field driving home Waddington.
 
The 'Jackets were able to mount an immediate response in the bottom half of the inning as Anna Cornell gave up a one-out double to Jensen Sminchak and Lauren Keys ended up pinch hitting and singling her home to make it 1-1. The score remained the same as Cornell continued to mow down the Rochester lineup until the bottom half of the sixth where the YellowJackets plated two runs on three hits to go up 3-1.
 
Cornell finished with 10 strikeouts as the Bombers did outhit Rochester 7-6, but left six runners on base.
 
Next up, Ithaca will look to play its way back through the double-elimination tournament on Friday, starting with a 12:30 p.m. matchup against the No. 4 seeded RIT Tigers. The winner of this game will take on the loser of No.15 RPI/Rochester at 3 p.m.