ITHACA, N.Y. – The nationally-ranked St. John Fisher College softball team held the Ithaca College Bombers to just one run over two games but settled for a split on Sunday in an Empire 8 doubleheader at Doris Kostrinsky Field. With the split, Fisher, which is ranked seventh in the latest National Fastpitch Coaches Association Poll, moved to 5-1 in the Empire 8 and 18-4 overall while the Bombers finished the afternoon at 12-6 and 4-2 in the conference standings.
ITHACA 1, FISHER 0
The lone run of the game came in the first inning as Ithaca scored what turned out to be the game-winning run on a sacrifice fly.
Fisher had runners in scoring position in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings, but could not push a run across.
Lindsey Thayer was tagged with the loss and moved to 10-4 after going six innings and allowing just one run on three hits. She struck out 13 against just one walk.
FISHER 8, ITHACA 0
Thayer and the Cardinals bounced back in the nightcap, however, after holding Ithaca to just four hits while peppering the Bombers' defense with 15 hits of their own.
Fisher shook off its game one loss right away as
Sarah Kubik blasted a three-run homer over the right field fence that scored
Ashley Prince and
Katie Mazierski to make it 3-0.
The Cardinals tacked on one run in the fifth inning as
Kristina Balsano drew a bases-loaded walk and earned an RBI in the process to put the visitors up four runs heading into the home half of the inning.
After a 1-2-3 bottom of the fifth, Fisher scored another run on two hits after loading the bases before an out had been recorded.
Karlie Neale put her team ahead 5-0 and picked up an RBI after reaching on a fielder's choice that scored Mazierski who had singled to lead off the sixth.
Head coach
Bari Mance's squad continued to hit the ball in the top of the seventh as Balsano led off with a double and moved to third on a groundout. Mazierski singled through the right side to drive in a run and scored when Prince lofted a double to right center to put the Cardinals up, 7-0. As the inning continued, Fisher played another run to hold an 8-0 edge when Neale singled to right on a 1-1 count to push Prince across home plate.
Thayer, who moved to 11-4 with the win, pitched five innings and allowed just two hits with 11 strikeouts before being lifted in favor of
Monica Moses in the sixth. Moses allowed two hits over the final two innings and had three strikeouts in all.
Fisher will continue its swing through the Finger Lakes Region when it takes on SUNY Cortland at 3 p.m. on Monday with a non-conference doubleheader at Cortland.
