LOUDONVILLE, NY – The Iona College softball team won the first and lost the second game of a doubleheader at Siena on Saturday.
Kara Zazzaro won her fifth decision of the season in the Gaels 5-2 victory in game one.
GAME ONE: (IONA 5, SIENA 2)
Two walks and a single loaded the bases for the Gaels in the top of the first inning with just one out. Taylor Rhinehart would escape trouble in the first frame by getting
Jasmine Temple and
Kaelene Walter to pop out in the infield.
Chilcott led off the top of the third with a single and
Natalia Meray reached on an error.
Ciarra DiGuilio eventually also reached on an error, allowing Chilcott to score. Rhinehart struck out Temple looking for the second out, but
Kaelene Walter singled back through the box to make it 2-0 in favor of Iona.
Siena cut the Iona lead in half in the bottom half on a two-out double by Yamila Evans. Sabrina Vargas came around to score after drawing a two-out walk earlier in the frame. Zazzaro stranded the tying run at second to hold the line for the Maroon & Gold.
The Gaels put two runners on base to begin the sixth inning after Walter was hit by a pitch and
Morgan Ritchey singled. Two quick outs turned the lineup over to the top for Chilcott, who delivered with a two-bagger down the line that brought Walter home. Siena got out of the inning with just the one run coming across, but now trailed 3-1.
In the top of the seventh, Iona rallied with two outs to push across two more runs. It began with a base on balls by Temple, who moved up to third on a double by Walter.
Morgan Ritchey battled, down in the count, and slapped one in the hole between short and third that the shortstop knocked down, but a run came across for the Gaels and pushed the lead to 4-1.
Brianna Buck followed suit, singling down the line in left to plate another run for Iona before
Maggie Foley was retired to end the inning.
A leadoff double to begin the bottom of the seventh started things off for Siena. Kaitlyn Davis brought home the runner with a single through the middle to make it a 5-2 ball game. Zazzaro would retire the next three batters however to end the game and secure her fifth victory of the season.
GAME TWO: (SIENA 8, IONA 4)
The Gaels spotted
Alyssa DeJianne a lead before she stepped on the mound in game two. Chilcott started things with a base on balls, moving to second and then third after back-to-back groundouts. DiGuilio brought Chilcott home with the game's first run on an infield single to the left side. The Gaels loaded the bases with two outs after a single by Temple and a walk drawn by Buck, but did not cash in.
Siena loaded the bases in its half of the first inning with two outs on a hit and two walks. DeJianne beared down though, getting a pop out to end the inning and keep the Saints off the board.
Hannah Collins began the second frame with a bang, sending one over the fence in left center to give Iona a 2-0 lead. Emma McLaughlin started the bottom of the second the same way Collins did, with a solo shot, cutting the Saints' deficit to 2-1. DeJianne recorded two outs, but a two-out walk loaded the bases and brought Angelina Stile to the dish. Stile tied the game with a single and Maritza Diaz gave Siena a 4-2 lead with a single of her own. DiGuilio entered, ending the inning by getting a ground ball.
The two sides played clean innings, keeping each other off of the scoreboard in the third, fourth and fifth frames. Iona would tie things up at four in its turn to bat in the sixth, and they did it all with two outs.
Emma Capuano stood on second after a leadoff walk, but with two down in the inning.
Alexis Bailey pinch hit for
Maggie Foley, singling to put runners on the corner for Chilcott. A ball put into play by Chilcott was mishandled by the rightfielder as she trekked into the right-center gap, allowing the runners to score and knot the score at four. The Gael rally ended with a pop up on the infield.
Zazzaro, now in her second inning of relief work, was unable to keep Siena from retaking the lead. After retiring the leadoff hitter, six straight Saints reached base. Back-to-back-to-back singles pushed four runs across and gave Siena an 8-4 advantage in the bottom of the sixth. The Maroon & Gold faced that same deficit with three outs to spare, but went down in order in the seventh and fell in the series finale.
NOTABLE NUGGETS
- Zazzaro won her fifth game of the season in the opener on Saturday, allowing two runs on four hits and striking out nine batters.
- Collins hit her first homerun of the season and her career in game two, a solo shot that gave Iona a 2-0 lead in the early going.
- Chilcott extended her hitting streak to eight games to begin the 2021 season.
- Walter hit safely in both games today, finishing the afternoon 3-7 at the dish with two runs scored and a run batted in.
- DiGuilio entered in relief for the second straight game, tossing 2.1 scoreless innings. At the dish, she was 3-8 on the day with an RBI.
- After the 3-1 weekend, Iona has now won 14 of its last 20 contests in Loudonville since 2005.
AROUND THE MAAC
- Monmouth swept Quinnipiac for the second straight day, vaulting the Hawks to a 7-1 record and the top spot in the MAAC standings.
- Manhattan swept Saint Peter's, highlighted by a 12-inning win in the first of two games on Saturday.
- Niagara and Rider split, with the Purple Eagles winning game two. The Broncs won the three of the four games between the two teams this weekend.
- Fairfield held off Canisius to win game one of the doubleheader, 3-2. Game two was still underway at the time of this release.
UP NEXT
Iona plays its home opener of 2021 on Wednesday when Fairfield comes to town. The Gaels and the Stags will play a doubleheader, beginning at 2:00 p.m., on Donald E. Walsh Field.
SOCIAL MEDIA
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