QUEENS, NY - The Iona College softball team defeated St. John's, 5-3, on Wednesday afternoon at Red Storm Field. The victory was fueled by
Kayla Haywood's two-RBI double in the seventh inning, marking the Gaels first win at St. John's since 2012 and head coach
Alyssa Tiumalu's first victory over the program that preceded her time as the leader of the Maroon & Gold.
GAME SUMMARY
Allie Taylor kicked things on Wednesday by slashing a ball to right field that was mishandled and allowed Iona's lead-off hitter to reach third base. A shallow fly to left and a swinging strikeout nearly got the Johnnies off the hook in the opening stanza, but Jessica Chilcott hit a two-strike, two-out single to the opposite field to bring home Taylor with the first run of the day.
Zazzaro submitted a scoreless first frame, working around a two-out single to turn things back over to her offense. Kaylin Flukey and Morgan Ritchey hit back-to-back singles to start the second for the Maroon & Gold. A grounder and another strikeout swinging left runners on first and second with two outs. Iona's lineup turned over and Taylor tripled on the second pitch of the at-bat to plate Ritchey and Natalia Meray and pad the Gaels' lead.
Zazzaro mowed through St. John's in the bottom of the second, striking out the side on 13 pitches. She started the third inning with her fourth consecutive punchout. The Johnnies put a runner on second base with two away in the frame, but Jamie Sheeran and Meray teamed up to cut down the runner trying to steal third and end the inning.
Flukey and Ritchey both reached to open the fourth, just as they did in Iona's two-run second inning. This time however, they reached courtesy of St. John's second and third fielding errors. Carolina Zamudio retired the next two batters before issuing a two-out free pass to Taylor to load the bases. Sheeran flew out to center to end the threat and leave the bases loaded in the fourth.
Zazzaro continued to throw up zeroes until the sixth inning, where things unraveled for the Maroon & Gold. A two-run homer forced Zazzaro out of the game with one out in the inning. Samantha Rieb entered in relief and after getting the second out of the frame, allowed a game-tying solo shot.
Iona's offense picked up its staff in the seventh, clutching up again with two outs. Sheeran and Emma Capuano both reached via a base on balls and both came around to score on Haywood's two-out double. The two-bagger put Iona back in front, 5-3, heading into the final half inning. Rieb retired the Johnnies in order, striking out one in a clean inning to notch Iona's fourth straight win heading into a big weekend.
NOTABLE NUGGETS
- Haywood's game-winning double was her second hit of the afternoon, her third extra-base hit of the season and represented RBIs number 13 and 14 on the season. She enjoyed her third multi-hit contest of the year and has now hit safely in six straight games and reached safely in seven consecutive.
- Zazzaro made her 17th start in the circle, submitting 5.1 innings of scoreless ball before a two-run homer ended her day. She ended up with a no-decision, allowing two runs on four hits and a walk with seven strikeouts.
- Rieb worked the final 1.2 innings, allowing one run on one hit, striking out one. She earned the victory, improving her season record to 6-4 on the mound.
- Chilcott started the scoring in the first inning, driving home Taylor on a two-strike single with two outs. She leads the squadron with 26 runs batted in this season.
- Taylor delivered a two-run triple in the second to increase Iona's lead to three runs. The three-bagger was her team-leading second of the year and also came with two outs in the frame.
- All five of Iona's runs offensively came with two outs today. The Gaels hit 4-11 (.364) with two outs and Iona's lead-off batters were 4-7 (.571) in the victory.
- The victory over St. John's was Iona's second straight and Tiumalu's first against her former squad. It also marked the first time the Maroon & Gold beat the Red Storm in Queens since 2012. The Johnnies own a 19-7 advantage in the overall series history between the two programs.
UP NEXT
Iona returns to Donald E. Walsh Field for a pair of doubleheaders this weekend against Canisius and Niagara. The Gaels host the Purple Eagles on Saturday and the Griffs the following day. Both doubleheaders will begin at noon and fans can watch live on Sunday via Iona Insider.
SOCIAL MEDIA
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