PURCHASE, N.Y. – Taking a brief reprieve from conference play, the Manhattanville University softball team won a pair of thrilling contests against Stevens on Wednesday to extend their winning streak up to 14 straight. The Valiants walked off in Game One in the seventh before edging out the Ducks in a pitcher's duel in the day's finale.
Game One Recap: Manhattanville 5, Stevens 4
The Valiants struck early, plating four runs across the first two innings, but a resilient Stevens offense chipped their way back into the game to set the stage for a walk-off win.
Tied at 4-4,
Josie O'Leary (Pawling, N.Y./Pawling) and
Isabella Tansey (San Diego, Calif./University City) got something brewing with back-to-back singles to open the frame.
Olivia Fasce (Yorktown Heights, N.Y./Yorktown) moved the pair over on a sacrifice bunt before
Samantha Walsh (Spring City, Pa./Owen J Roberts) looked to deliver the game-winning hit, but her line drive was snagged at short for the second out. Up stepped
Angelina Cruz (Oceanside, Calif./Rancho Buena Vista), who was recognized earlier in the week for her red-hot bat by the NFCA. The sophomore catcher delivered once again, hitting the ball back up the middle to bring home Tansey with the winning run.
It was the first non-run rule walk-off win by the Valiants since 2023 when Manhattanville defeated John Jay on a
Sarah Harker (Irvine, Calif./Irvine) '24 game-winning hit in the NCAA Regional Tournament down in Virginia Beach.
Prior to the late heroics, Manhattanville took the lead in the first with some fundamental small ball. After Tansey led off with a hit by pitch, Fasce moved her into scoring position with a sac bunt. Tansey came home one batter later as Walsh found an opening in the right side of the infield for an RBI single, advancing to second on the throw and later up to third on a wild pitch. Cruz was able to bring the second baseman home with a sacrifice fly to spot the home team an early 2-0 lead.
The Ducks got one back in the top of the second in a three-hit inning, but Tansey extended the Valiant lead with a two-out single, scoring
Emily Mottoshiski (Craryville, N.Y./Taconic Hills) and
Samantha Reyer (Oceanside, N.Y./Oceanside) to put Manhattanville up 4-1.
Stevens patiently chipped away at the lead, plating a run in each of the next three innings to eventually tie things up at 4-4 in the fifth. The Ducks looked to make it runs in five straight innings as the guests threatened in the sixth, getting a pair on with no outs. The Valiants played solid defense in a sequence that saw the ball being tossed all over the infield as the Ducks were caught in a rundown, eventually retiring the would-be go-ahead run at home to keep the score even.
Mottoshiski improved to 13-3 as she earned the win, navigating around her season-high four earned runs allowed. The senior went a complete seven innings and allowed ten total hits and a pair of walks while striking out one. Her ERA now sits at 1.81 on the season.
Cruz, Tansey and Reyer each enjoyed two-hit games in the opener. It was the first game the Valiants did not record an extra base hit since Mar. 30 at Salisbury.
Game Two Recap: Manhattanville 4, Stevens 2
The Valiants found themselves in a rare situation as of late, needing to battle from behind in Game Two. Manhattanville successful erased a pair of one-run Duck leads to complete the sweep of Wednesday's action.
Stevens jumped in front with a first inning run before the Valiants staged their first comeback in the second as Cruz led off with her fifth home run of the season. The score held even until the fifth when the Ducks reclaimed the lead on Emma Quattrochi's RBI single to go up 2-1.
Fasce led off the bottom half with a single, and while the Ducks were able to set the next two batters down,
Rachel Coleman (Lake Forest, Calif./Mission Viejo) would be a different story. The first baseman smashed the first pitch she saw from Jessica Hsu towards the line of cars parked beyond the left field fence for her third homer of the season to spot Manhattanville its first lead of the game at 3-2.
The Valiants tacked on an insurance run in the sixth on
Cady Sickler's (Kingston, N.Y./Kingston) RBI groundout that allowed
Alexa Lazur (Carlsbad, Calif./La Costa Canyon) to score.
Jori Wilkendorf (Livermore, Calif./Livermore) threw a season-high 113 pitches in the complete game, improving to 7-3 in the circle with another gem. The sophomore was able to work her way around eight hits as she pitched seven innings for the first time in her career. While her shutout streak came to an end at 18 consecutive innings, Wilkendorf was only charged for one earned run in the win while striking out four and allowing only one walk. Her ERA continues to climb down, ending the day at 2.06 for the year.
Mottoshiski went 2-for-3 at the plate, hitting a pair of doubles. Cruz and Reyer also finished with a pair of hits, while Lazur stole a pair of bases.
Up Next
The Valiants pick Skyline Conference play back up over the weekend, scheduled to play a pair against Sarah Lawrence on Saturday ahead of a doubleheader against Yeshiva on Sunday.
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