PITTSFORD, N.Y. – The nationally-ranked St. John Fisher College softball team split its games with the University of Rochester on Wednesday despite no-hitting the Yellowjackets over 11 innings in the nightcap. With the split, the Cardinals, who are ranked ninth in the latest National Fastpitch Coaches Association poll, moved to 8-6 on the season while Rochester closed out the day at 3-9.
FISHER 2, ROCHESTER 0
Senior pitcher
Lindsey Thayer earned her fifth win of the season (5-2) after throwing a complete game shutout with a season-high 17 strikeouts. Thayer allowed just three hits and only surrendered two walks in the win.
After a quick top of the first inning, the Cardinals, who have been idle since March 8th, scored what turned out to be the only runs they'd need in the home half of the frame when
Emily Trotman drove in a pair on a single to left that scored both
Julia Sortisio and
Sammie Torlish.
In all, Fisher pounded out 10 hits led by
Emma Savas who went 2-for-3 at the dish. Sortisio was 1-for-2 with a run scored and a walk while Trotman was 1-for-3 with two RBI.
ROCHESTER 1, FISHER 0 (11 INNINGS)
The Cardinals were at their best in the circle in the nightcap as
Monica Moses and Thayer did not allow a hit trough 11 innings of play. Moses started the game, but did not factor in the decision after going eight innings with nine strikeouts before being lifted for Thayer who threw the final three frames. Thayer was saddled with the loss to move to 5-3 after yielding one run. The senior notched three strikeouts and did not surrender a walk.
After six scoreless innings, Fisher looked poised to put the game away in the bottom of the seventh after loading the bases. Sortisio led off the frame with a double to left center before
Alexa Montemayor singled and Torlish followed suit with singles of their own to load the bases with no outs. Rochester would escape the jam, however, after netting a strikeout before a shallow fly to center resulted in two outs as the Cardinals left third early to have the side retired.
Fisher had a runner at third in the top of the 10th after a sac bunt from Torlish moved Montemayor over, but the Yellowjackets were again able to induce two quick outs to keep Fisher at bay heading to the top of the 11th.
In the 11th, Rochester finally broke through after dropping down two sacrifice bunts to take a 1-0 lead. Fisher nearly tied the game in the bottom of the frame, but it was not to be as the Cardinals left a runner stranded at third.
The Cardinals will return to the diamond at 3 p.m. on Friday when they take on former Empire 8 rival Ithaca College in a non-conference doubleheader at Cornell University.
