Category: Softball

Andrew Arnao

Sports Editor

The softball team had a rough weekend on the road against Army, falling to its Patriot League rivals in three out of four games. The lone win was the final game of the April 21 doubleheader, in which Dana Nielsen ’16 and Cindy Cherness ’16 combined for a five-hit shutout to prevent a series sweep. The Bison also triumphed in a home game against Saint Francis (Pa.) on April 24.

Game one against Army on April 20 featured Amanda Fazio ’16 on the mound as she looked to improve her recent string of successful outings. Fazio ran into trouble in the first inning, where a pair of errors by the Bison allowed two runners to score for the Black Knights. Fazio was lights out from there, allowing only two hits through the remainder of her outing to give her a final box score of 5.1 innings pitched, two hits, no earned runs and three strikeouts. Cherness relieved Fazio in the sixth and caused the only batter she faced to pop up into a double play, keeping the deficit at two runs. However, the Bison offense was unable to come up with any runs in support of Fazio, with shortstop Cydnee Sanders ’15 recording the only hit for the Bison, and the Orange and the Blue dropped game one by a final of 2-0.

In game two, the Bison offense was paced by Cassie Greenhawk ’13, who hit a two-RBI triple in the third and also scored two runs. However, Nielsen allowed four runs in five innings to keep the score knotted at 4-4 going into the seventh inning, where the Black Knights walked off 5-4 after scoring a run off Cherness to hand the Bison their second loss of the day.

Game three on April 21 proved to be a pitching duel, as both teams remained scoreless until the 11th inning. Unfortunately for the Bison, Army once again pulled through with the clutch hit, an RBI triple by the Black Knights allowing an unearned run to score against Cherness. The 1-0 loss did not affect another wonderful performance by Fazio, who allowed only seven hits in 7.2 innings and struck out seven. However, the Bison could only manage two hits against the Army starter Morgan Lashley, who pitched all 11 innings in the loss.

All of the cylinders finally started firing for the Bison in game four, when Nielsen and Cherness combined for their dominating 4-0 shutout. Nielsen allowed five hits over 6.1 innings, struck out three and did not walk a batter. Similar to game one, Cherness came in with a runner on base and caused the batter to hit into a double play, this time ending the game in favor of the Bison. Third baseman Colie Escobar ’15 went 3-3 at the plate, hitting her team-leading fourth home run of the year, while right fielder Kristen Zahn ’15 also added three hits and two RBI. Greenhawk scored two of the Bison’s four runs.

Nielsen also pitched well in the game against Saint Francis (Pa.), going four innings and allowing two runs (one earned) on four hits and striking out three. Bridget Gates ’13 relieved Nielsen and threw three shutout innings, allowing just one hit and recording one strikeout. On offense, Zahn drove the Bison to victory with a 3-3 performance, including an RBI single in the first to score Greenhawk and a solo home run in the third to put the Bison ahead for good in a 3-2 victory.

The Bison now enter a crucial weekend as they travel to face Patriot League rival Holy Cross for their final series of the regular season. The Bison play four games against Holy Cross, and must win two of them in order to stay in contention for the Patriot League Tournament. The Orange and the Blue will look to ride their strong pitching to victory, starting with the first pitch Saturday at noon.

Thomas Walter

Senior Writer

Dana Nielsen ’16 was named Patriot League Pitcher of the Week and Amanda Fazio ’16 earned Patriot League Rookie of the Week honors as the women’s softball team swept Lafayette last weekend, recording three shutouts in four games and reaching .500 in Patriot League play to move into fourth place in the Patriot League standings. After splitting a doubleheader against Saint Francis (Pa.), the Bison are now 14-25 overall and 6-6 against Patriot League rivals.

Fazio and Nielsen got things started on April 13 with two dominating performances that resulted in one-hit shutouts for both pitchers. In game one’s 4-0 victory, Fazio took a perfect game into the seventh inning and faced the minimum, when the only runner to record a hit was thrown out at second base by Mariah Midyette ’16. Fazio recorded nine strikeouts, gave up no walks and has now thrown a shutout in three of her last five appearances. Fazio was backed offensively by Kristen Zahn ’15, who recorded three RBIs thanks to a two-run homer and a sacrifice fly, and Erin Cox ’15, who singled and scored on an error.

Nielsen followed up Fazio in game two’s 2-0 triumph with a dazzling effort of her own, allowing only a third-inning single and striking out 12 en route to her own complete game shutout. The offense supported Nielsen with a pair of RBI singles from Cydnee Sanders ’15 and Cheyanna Young ’16, scoring Cassie Greenhawk ’13 and Midyette, respectively.

“We feel like we are finally putting all the pieces together and getting the sweep helped us feel like all our hard work we’ve put in all year is finally paying off,” Nielsen said. “We just have to keep this momentum and I think we will continue being successful.”

On April 14, Fazio returned in game three with another gem, throwing 5.1 shutout innings and combining with Cindy Cherness ’16 for another 4-0 shutout. Three different Bison contributed RBIs to the effort, while Zahn led the team with two hits. The Bison completed the sweep with an 8-3 win in the night game, with Nielsen recording her second win of the series after allowing only one earned run and striking out seven in 5.0 innings. Cox and Midyette homered in the final game to help pace the Bison offensive onslaught.

“I think we have focused a lot this season on just taking the season one game, or even down to one inning and one out at a time,” Fazio said. “It is exciting thinking about playing in the tournament, but we have to put the work in now and focus on one inning at a time in order to have a shot at the tournament.”

The Bison finished up their slate for the week with two games against Saint Francis (Pa.) on April 17. The Orange and the Blue triumphed in the first game after coming back to win 4-3, but could not mount the same comeback as Saint Francis (Pa.) held on for a 5-4 victory in the nightcap.

Saturday was also Senior Day for the Bison, with Greenhawk, Mary Horton ’13, Bridget Gates ’13, Alex MacLean ’13 and Laura Sandford ’13 all being honored.

The Orange and the Blue will look to continue their strong play as they travel to face Army in another Patriot League series this weekend.

Thomas Walter

Senior Writer

The Bison travelled to Hamilton, N.Y. on April 6-7 to play four games against Patriot League rival Colgate. A fantastic effort from pitcher Amanda Fazio ’16 gave the Orange and the Blue a 7-0 victory in game one, marking the first win against the Raiders since the 2010 Patriot League Championships. The Bison could not match their success in game two as they fell 3-2 in extra innings. The Bison also lost both games of the doubleheader on April 7 by final scores of 4-2 and 8-5.

Fazio dominated game one, and recorded her second straight start without allowing any earned runs. Colie Escobar ’15 got the Bison on the board with a two-run homer in the second, and Fazio never let the lead slip away. Also adding RBI’s for the Bison were Cassie Greenhawk ’13, Cydnee Sanders ’15 and Erin Cox ’15. The Bison also got off to a quick start in game two thanks to an RBI double by Sanders, but the Raiders responded with two solo home runs. Though Courtney Conover ’14 tied up the game with an RBI single in the fifth, Fazio gave up a lone run in 3.2 innings of relief to give the game to the Raiders.

The Bison led early in games three and four, but both leads slipped away as Colgate came back to win each game. Escobar led the offense on April 7 by going 2-2 with another home run and a double, while Cox, Sanders and Mary Horton ’13 all recorded multi-hit games. The two losses moved the Bison’s record to 2-6 in the Patriot League, and 9-24 overall.

“So far our record hasn’t shown what we all would like to see, but that doesn’t mean we aren’t improving. Every game this year, I can see how much better we are than last year,” Escobar said. “We have the talent, we just need to regain the confidence and we are slowly making that progress. This weekend against Colgate showed us we have the potential to win any Patriot League game. As long as we continue to stay focused and keep playing our hardest, we will be successful.”

The Bison will look to earn some much-needed wins and leap up in the Patriot League standings as they host the Lafayette Leopards this weekend in another four-game series.  The first pitch will be thrown Saturday at noon.

Thomas Walter

Senior Writer

In a busy week on the diamond, the Orange and Blue lost three of four games to Lehigh over the weekend before splitting a two-game series against La Salle.

The Orange and the Blue split the opening doubleheader against Lehigh on March 29. Tori Robinson ’15 and Kristen Zahn ’15 drove in the Bison’s two runs in the night game as they won 2-1. The Bison lost the first game 6-1 as Lehigh took a commanding lead early by scoring five unanswered runs in the first five innings.

It was a difficult outing for the Bison, as they dropped both games of the doubleheader on March 30. The Bison lost 5-2 in game one, when after assuming a 2-1 lead in the second inning, the Bison offense was shut down while Lehigh rallied to take the lead and score several insurance runs.

The Orange and Blue then fell 3-1 in game two, when pitcher Amanda Fazio ’16 lost the shutout in the seventh inning thanks to a three-run home run by Lehigh. The offense proved to be a problem for the Orange and the Blue, who scored a total of six runs over four games. It was a trend that continued into their series with La Salle.

The Bison were shut out 8-0 in the first game against La Salle, but responded with a 7-0 win against the Explorers in game two. It was a much-needed bit of momentum for the Orange and the Blue as the team finally showed its offensive potential. In the sixth inning, the Bison scored four runs on three hits, thanks to Mary Horton ’13 driving in two runs and Cydnee Sanders ’15 knocked in the third.

“The shutout against Lasalle was a confidence booster and proved to ourselves that we can compete with any team,” Caryn Connors ’14 said. “Going into a Patriot League weekend competition with a win is always uplifting. During our games against Colgate and other Patriot League schools to come, we need to take each game out by out, inning by inning. We can compete with each and every team when we play our game and stay in control.”

The Bison will look to build on their positive offensive momentum as they continue Patriot League play this weekend when they travel to Hamilton, N.Y. to face Colgate.

Katherine Harris

Senior Writer

After 21 consecutive road games, the women’s softball team faced off against Drexel on March 27 in its first two home games of the season. Unfortunately, the Bison could not get a win in either half of the doubleheader, losing both by a score of 3-1.

In the first game, the Bison offense was led by Cydnee Sanders ’15. Sanders not only posted two singles and a triple, but also scored the only run for the Orange and Blue.

“We had trouble stringing along hits. We have been working on a lot of little things to improve our game, and I think we just have to put it all together now,” Sanders said.

Several other members of the team also performed well in the tight loss. Mary Horton ’13 posted the Bison’s only other two hits in the match. Pitcher Amanda Fazio ’16 also had a good day, pitching a full game and allowing only five hits, with no earned runs.

After a brief break, the Orange and Blue looked for revenge in the second half of the doubleheader. The Bison were hot early and jumped out to a quick lead in the second inning when Sanders got on base with a single and was later driven in on a single by Lauren Swindell ’16. Dana Nielsen ’16 got the loss on the mound. Despite being credited with all three runs, she managed to strike out seven opponents on the day.

The Bison will continue their stretch of home games this weekend when they host Lehigh for doubleheaders starting at 1 p.m. and 12 p.m. on March 30 and March 31, respectively.

Lauren Boone

Staff Writer

The Bison traveled to Washington, D.C. to compete in the Colonial Classic this past weekend, coming away with a 4-3 win against George Washington, a 4-0 shutout over Seton Hall and a 4-2 loss to the Pirates. The two wins brought the Orange and the Blue’s overall record to 3-8.

The Bison pulled out their second win of the season in an eight-inning game against tournament host George Washington on March 1. It was the fourth extra-inning game of the season for the Bison. Due to the international tiebreaker rule, Mariah Midyette ’16 started off on second base. Thanks to a sacrifice bunt from Cheyanna Young ’16, Midyette was able to advance to third. Mallory Lyons ’14 hit the game-winning single in the top of the eighth inning to send Midyette home and defeat the Colonials.

Dana Nielsen ’16 took the win for the Orange and the Blue. She served as the relief pitcher for 2.2 innings without giving up a walk or a hit.

After several postponed and cancelled games due to darkness, the Orange and Blue were finally able to get back on the field on March 3 for a split doubleheader against Seton Hall. The Bison lost the first game, which they entered trailing 4-0 in the fourth inning, but Courtney Conover ’14 had a strong game, scoring both Bison runs with a home run in the seventh inning.

Although the Orange and Blue could only string together two runs in the first game, they were able to put four runs on the scoreboard in the second game, which was ended after five innings due to darkness.

Cydnee Sanders ’15 singled to get on base, then advanced to second on a base hit from Erin Cox ’15. Sanders scored the first run in the first inning, coming home on a wild pitch. The Bison scored their second run of the game in the fourth inning, when Young drew a leadoff walk, and then pinch runner Caryn Connors ’14 came home on Conover’s double to right center field.

The Bison scored their final two runs of the game in the fifth inning before the darkness set in. Cox singled to get on base, then scored due to fielder’s choice. Conover helped score another run due to another fielder’s choice.

“The tournament this weekend went pretty well for the team aside from all the field complications we experienced,” Conover said. “Aside from the one loss, the team worked extremely hard and got the bats rolling in our games against Seton Hall. Communication was a major aspect of our success this past weekend. It was exciting to finally beat a team that Bucknell has never beaten in past years. The team is really coming together as a unit.”

Nielsen (1-3) took the loss from the first game, while Amanda Fazio ’16 (2-4) took the win in the nightcap. Fazio pitched her first career shutout, only allowing nine hits and four runners in scoring position.

The Orange and Blue will travel to Texas and Louisiana to compete in several games over Spring Break. They will play Houston Baptist (March 11), Lamar (March 12), McNeese State (March 13), Prairie View A&M (March 15) and Texas Southern (March 16).

Lauren Boone

Staff Writer

The softball team was defeated 13-2 by Stony Brook and also fell 7-0 to Longwood at the Longwood Spring Classic on Saturday, Feb. 23. The Orange and Blue also suffered two losses on Sunday’s double-header, falling 4-3 to Stony Brook and 9-1 to Longwood. The losses dropped the Bison’s season record to 1-7.

Nine third-inning runs doomed the Bison in game one, as Stony Brook jumped out to an early 9-0 lead. Cydnee Sanders ’15 got the Bison on the board with an RBI single in the bottom of the third, and Alex Wells ’15 drew a bases loaded walk in the fourth, but that would be all the Bison would get.

The third inning was problematic once again for the Orange and the Blue in game two, as Longwood scored four runs to put themselves ahead of the Bison 5-0. Though the Bison had several opportunities to score in the third and fifth innings, they were unable to capitalize in the eventual shutout.

The Bison held a close game against Stony Brook, forcing the game into extra innings before the Seawolves claimed victory on Feb. 24. Stony Brook led the Bison 3-0 after three innings, but the Orange and the Blue obtained their three runs via Sanders scoring on a wild pitch, and then a Mariah Midyette ’16 home run to bring home Cassie Greenhawk ’13. Midyette’s home run was the first of the season for the Bison, and it ultimately pushed the game into extra innings.

Thanks to the international tiebreaker rule, the Orange and Blue began the top of the eight with Amanda Fazio ’16 on second base. Fazio managed to progress to third on a ground out, but she was ultimately thrown out at home plate after a bunt. The Seawolves took advantage of their opportunity and scored a run to win the game. Their second base runner came home on a single and a sacrifice fly.

The Bison concluded the Longwood Spring Classic with a game against the host Lancers. Longwood hit a two-run homer in the first inning, giving them an early lead. Longwood then continued to score at least two runs in three of the six innings played, turning the game into a blowout loss for the Orange and Blue.

“We had a great outing this week, it’s just a matter of stringing together individual performances as a unit to secure more wins. The pitchers, particularly the freshmen, pitched their hearts out,” Cheyanna Young ’16 said. 

The Bison will be back in action this weekend at the Colonial Classic in Washington, D.C.