NEW HAVEN, CONN. – Battling the elements and the Falcons, the Manhattanville University softball team notched its fifth-straight win on Wednesday with a 6-2 victory at Albertus Magnus. Originally scheduled as a doubleheader, the teams were able to complete Game One through the rain before canceling the second.
A four-run seventh inning broke a 2-2 tie and gave the Valiants back both the lead and the momentum after the Falcons evened the score in the sixth. Manhattanville used four hits and a Falcon error to regain the late lead.
Emma Foster (Santa Barbara, Calif./San Marcos) worked the count in the leadoff spot, singling to center after a seven-pitch at bat. An error on
Josie O'Leary's (Pawling, N.Y./Pawling) at-bat opened the door, with the sophomore stealing second to put a pair in scoring position with nobody away.
Isabella Tansey (San Diego, Calif./University City) delivered, smoking a triple to plate both runs.
The Falcons made a pitching change to try to keep the damage at the two runs, but
Lianna Lara (Santa Clarita, Calif./Sierra Canyon School) took the second pitch she saw from Madison Wilson over the wall for her first collegiate homer and furthering the Valiant lead to 6-2.
After coming on in the sixth and working out of a two runner on, nobody out jam with just one inherited run allowed,
Tahlia Smith (St. Helena, Calif./St. Helena) earned the win by holding the Falcons scoreless in the seventh, navigating a walk and a two-out single to improve to 2-2 on her freshman season. Her final line across two scoreless innings was two hits and a walk with a pair of strikeouts.
Leading up to the seventh-inning rally, the Valiants took the first lead of the game on a pair of
Breanna Ochoa (South Gate, Calif./Saint Joseph High School) RBIs in the second and fourth innings. The rookie put Manhattanville on the board with a groundout to score
Alexa Lazur (Carlsbad, Calif./La Costa Canyon) from third, who led off with a walk and moved up the bases on a sacrifice and an error. Two innings later, Ochoa scored Lazur again, this time with a two-out single to put the Valiants up a pair.
Albertus got the runs back in the fifth and sixth, breaking up the shutout with an unearned run before getting a pair on against
Jori Wilkendorf (Livermore, Calif./Livermore) to begin the sixth with a double and a walk. Mikaela Schwippert scored on a single by Karla Carangelo as Smith came in for relief, but the freshman arm was able to set down the next three batters and keep the game tied.
Wilkendorf went five-plus innings, allowing the two runs (one earned) on six hits and a pair of walks while striking out two.
Tansey and
Samantha Reyer (Oceanside, N.Y./Oceanside) were the lone Valiants with multiple hits in the win, with Tansey adding a double in the third to her two-run triple.
O'Leary stole two more bases to take the team lead with 16 swipes on 17 tries. The sophomore also extended her run-scoring streak to eight-straight games, crossing home 12 times in that span.
Up Next
The Valiants are off for the next ten days and will return to action on Apr. 11 with a Skyline Conference doubleheader at Sarah Lawrence starting at noon.
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