Softball Extends Streak to Five in Extras, But Old Westbury Earns Split in Wild Slugfest

OLD WESTBURY, N.Y. — The St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) softball team scored five unanswered runs and scored three runs in the ninth to take a 7-5 Skyline Conference victory over SUNY College at Old Westbury to extend their win streak to five. But despite the Panthers roaring back for 14 runs in the first of the nightcap, the Lady Bears clawed back but saw their comeback rally fall just short with the tying runners on base in a 16-14 slugfest.

The Basics

• Final Score (Game 1): St. Joseph's 7, Old Westbury 5 (9 innings)
• Final Score (Game 2): Old Westbury 16, St. Joseph's 14
• Records: St. Joseph's (5-8, 2-6 Skyline), Old Westbury (7-5, 3-5 Skyline)
• Date: April 6, 2016
• Location: Old Westbury, N.Y.
• Field: Jackie Robinson Athletic Complex
• St. Joseph's Starters (Game 1): Simon (SS), Eddy (C), Ferrigno (3B), Rossi (LF), Marino (CF), Gentile (1B), Armano (P), Quintana (2B), Rancel (RF)
• St. Joseph's Starters (Game 2): Simon (SS), Eddy (2B), Ferrigno (3B), Rossi (LF), Marino (CF), Gentile (1B), Armano (DP), Quintana (C), Rancel (RF), McGowan (P)

How it Happened - Game 1

• St. Joseph's got on the board quickly posting a pair of runs, highlighted by a Destiny Marino double to the opposite field. But the Panthers matched it in the home half of the inning with an Amanda Fucci two-run double.
• Old Westbury moved ahead in the third with Fucci striking again launching a two-run home run, helping her own cause in the circle.
• The Lady Bears clawed back into the contest, with solo runs in the fourth and fifth innings, tying the game at 4-4. Armano also helped her cause with a double in the fourth that cut the deficit in half and Gentile knocking a single in the fifth that scored Kristin Ferrigno who started the frame off with a double.
• With the game deadlocked at 4-all, Fucci and Armano matched each other throwing up zeros with hitless frames in the sixth, seventh and eighth.
• SJC finally broke through in the ninth knocking three straight hits to set off a three-run stanza. Eddy led off with a single, followed by a Ferrigno double and Samantha Rossi singled up the middle to start the scoring. SJC later loaded the bases on a Panther miscue and Armano's was hit by a pitch bringing in the eventual game-winner and Nicole Quintana had a sacrifice fly for another insurance run.
• With a three-run cushion, Armano retired two of the first three batters, but the hosts would make some noise. A Kristan Taylor single cut the deficit to two and an SJC miscue put the tying run at first, but Armano shut the door on the comeback and closed out the complete-game victory with a grounder.

How it Happened - Game 2

• Looking to avenge the game one loss, Old Westbury sent 20 batters to the plate in the first and plated 14 runs on 10 hits to take a commanding lead. Brittany Chernoff highlighted the inning with a grand slam that put OW up 7-0 and moved up 9-0 before SJC could record an out.
• St. Joseph's trailed 16-3 heading into the fifth and the game appeared to end by run rule, but the Lady Bears never gave up and scored six in the fifth to extend the game. Simon, Eddy and Ferrigno set the table with three straight singles to load the bases. Later with the bases still loaded Armano and Quintana both brought home runs with RBI singles and Stephanie Rancel drew a one-out RBI walk and Eddy drew a crucial two-out walk to get underneath the eight-run threshold.
• The Lady Bears went down swinging in the seventh and scored four runs to to cut the deficit to three with only one out. Eddy started the scoring with a grounder followed by a Ferrigno single and a Rossi two-run double. Later, the Panthers committed an error that would have ended the game and allowed runners at the corners with the tying run standing at first with two outs, but Amanda Fucci would shut down the comeback bid with a flyout

For the Lady Bears

• Samantha Rossi (4-for-7, 4 RBI, 5 R, 2 2B) extended her hitting streak to nine highlighted by a 3-for-5, three-RBI effort in game two.
• Theresa Armano worked 15.0 innings in the circle, striking out four and picked up the win in game one to improve to 4-5. She helped her cause driving in a team-high-tying four runs with a 3-for-9 day at the dish.
• Erica Eddy (4-for-9, 3 R, 2 RBI) and Kristin Ferrigno (4-for-10, 4 R, RBI, 2 2B) matched Rossi with four hits each.
• Samantha Simon (3-for-9, 3 R) and Nicole Quintana (3-for-9, 3 RBI) matched Armano with three hits each as SJC knocked 23 hits on the afternoon.

For the Panthers

• Amanda Fucci paced the offense with a 4-for-7 day with seven RBI, two runs scored, a home run and a double. She also tossed 12 innings of work across both games, striking out nine and earning a save in game two.
• Delana Murray batted 5-for-10 with a pair of runs and a RBI.
• Gabriella Valdes (4-for-9) knocked four hits and scored four times.

Inside the Box Scores

• Both teams combined for 30 runs and 32 hits in the slugfest in game two.
• The sloppy twinbill also featured a combined 14 errors with the hosts committing nine miscues.
• With a walk and single in game one and a walk in game two, Maria Gentile extends her reached base safely streak to 10 games.

The Lady Bear Facts

• The game one win snaps a three-game skid to Old Westbury and is the first win since a 6-0 victory in April 2010. Old Westbury also saw their six-game streak entering the day snapped in the opener.
• The nine-inning affair in game one matches the longest game in SJC history. There have been three nine-inning games previously, last on May 2, 2009 when the Lady Bears beat the College of St. Elizabeth, 2-1, in the Hudson Valley championship game. SJC is now 2-2 in nine-inning affairs.
• Theresa Armano's nine innings pitched in game one matches the single game record held by Lisa Scheer '12 in 2009 and Kaitlin O'Neill '07 in 2005.

Next Up for St. Joseph's

After notching their second win in league play, the Lady Bears continue Skyline play hosting the College of Mount Saint Vincent at Padavan-Preller Field. Game one is set to start at 12 p.m. with live stats on SJCBears.com