Softball Splits With Purchase, Snaps 10 Game Win Streak

BROOKLYN, NY – Lisa Scheer (Queens, NY/Mary Louis) pitched a complete game, striking out five and scored the winning run in a 2-1 win over Purchase College on Thursday evening at National Grid Softball Field.  The Lady Bears dropped the nightcap, 5-1.  Emily Palmieri (Staten Island, NY/St. John's Villa) hit 4-for-5 on the twin-bill, the only Lady Bear to register multiple hits for the series.

Purchase College drew first blood in the third, getting two hits with two outs to score their only run of the game.  The Panthers picked up three of their five hits in the inning.

St. Joseph's struck back in bottom half of the inning, with Theresa Mendez(Queens, NY/St. Francis Prep) hitting a one-out single.  Two batters later, Scheer hit a bomb for a triple to send Mendez home and scored the go-ahead run on an error by Alyse LaPadula.

Scheer silenced the Purchase bats in the final four innings allowing only one more hit.  Purchase threatened to equalize the game in the fifth and seventh innings getting a runner into scoring position, but were unable to deliver the tying run.  Scheer earned her ninth win of the season in the circle.

In the nightcap, St. Joseph's managed only two hits with Purchase playing outstanding defense and robbing several Lady Bears of hits.  The deciding inning came in the third with the Panthers plating three runs on two hits, with the Lady Bears committing two errors in the inning.  Purchase knocked eight hits off starter Alyson Chiaramonte (Staten Island, NY/Moore Catholic) who broke her seven-game winning streak.  Chiaramonte struck out seven and walked two, allowing five runs (two unearned).

The Lady Bears had their best opportunity of the game in the bottom of the fourth loading the bases and no outs on walks by Jackie Marinello (Brooklyn, NY/Fontbonne) and Scheer and a Chiaramonte single.  Freshman Caitlyn Kakavas(Queens, NY/St. Agnes) drove in Marinello on a sacrifice fly for St. Joe's only run, but Purchase escaped the jam with two ground outs.  St. Joseph's went down in order in the final three innings, all nine outs on balls put in play but retired by the defense.

St. Joseph's improves to 18-8 on the season and Purchase moves to 16-10.  The Lady Bears return to action on Saturday, April 25 hosting Brooklyn College for a two-game set at National Grid Softball Field.  First game is scheduled for 3 p.m.