Rancel, Mahoney Lead Softball to Split With NJCU in Home Opener

BROOKLYN, N.Y. — A two-out RBI single from Stephanie Rancel (Middle Village, N.Y./Christ the King) and a complete-game, eight-strikeout effort from Victoria Mahoney (Allenwood, N.J./Saint John Vianney) propelled the St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) softball team to a 2-1 victory over New Jersey City University in their first game on Gil Hodges Field, but the Gothic Knights used a big fifth inning in game two to split the non-conference twin-bill on Saturday afternoon. Amber Wainwright (Taunton, Mass./Taunton) finished with four hits and two RBI on the day.

The Basics

• Final Scores: St. Joseph's 2, NJCU 1; NJCU 7, St. Joseph's 4 
• Records: St. Joseph's (3-5), NJCU (4-6)
• Location: Brooklyn, N.Y. — Gil Hodges Field

Game 1: St. Joseph's 2, NJCU 1

SJC Starters: Csikortos (SS), Rancel (CF), Vento (LF), Wainwright (3B), Whalen (DP), Gentile (1B), Baglino (C), Quintana (2B), Finnerty (RF); Mahoney (P)

• A leadoff walk by Paige Csikortos (Rocky Point, N.Y./Rocky Point) followed by a Rancel single and a Gothic Knight helped the Bears plate an unearned run to take a 1-0 lead after one.
• NJCU quickly got the run back in the second on a Melissa Mendoza single and both teams remained deadlocked at 1-all until the sixth.
• In the sixth, Nicole Quintana (Brooklyn, N.Y./St. Edmund Prep) set up the frame with a single to right, took second on a wild pitch and advanced to third on a grounder. Rancel then punched a 0-1 pitch to left center that scored Quintana for the deciding run.
• Mahoney retired the side in order in the seventh to seal the complete-game victory, finishing with eight strikeouts.

Game 2: NJCU 7, St. Joseph's 4

SJC Starters: Csikortos (SS), Rancel (CF), Kampuries (LF), Wainwright (3B), Whalen (DP), Gentile (1B), Quintana (2B), Fielding (C) Finnerty (RF); Erhardt (P)

• A lapse in the defense with two miscues on the same play allowed the visitors to take their first lead of the day with an unearned run in the first.
• Amber Wainwright (Taunton, Mass./Taunton) knocked a two-run double in the third that scored Csikortos who led off the frame with a single and Rancel who followed with a walk. NJCU returned the favor of an unearned run with a two-out miscue that allowed Wainwright to come home, putting the Bears up 3-1 after three.
• After the squads matched posting solo scores in both ends of the fourth, the visitors opened the fifth with four straight hits that knocked Bears starter Madison Erhardt (Baltimore, Md./Dulaney) out of the circle. The Gothic Knights would push five runs across in the frame and took a 7-4 lead.
• The Bears threatened in their final three frames, leaving the bases loaded in the fifth and sixth and the game ending with the tying run at the plate in the seventh.

For the Bears

• Victoria Mahoney improved to 2-1 in the circle going the distance, striking out eight, scattering seven hits, while walking none. She also tossed two scoreless innings in relief in game two.
• Amber Wainwright extended her hitting streak to seven games, posting a pair of multi-hit games, finishing the day with four hits, two RBI, one run, and two walks.
• Stephanie Rancel finished 2-for-4 in game one, including the game-winning RBI.
• Maria Gentile (Brooklyn, N.Y./Fontbonne Hall), Nicole Quintana and Megan Finnerty (Whitestone, N.Y./Archbishop Molloy)  each went 2-for-3 with a walk in game two.

Next Up for the Bears

• The Bears host John Jay College tomorrow (Mar. 18) at 3:45 p.m. at Gil Hodges Field in a game originally scheduled for Friday. Live stats will be available on SJCBears.com