NEW ROCHELLE, NY - The Iona College softball team split its doubleheader with Niagara on Saturday afternoon at Donald E. Walsh Field.
Kara Zazzaro and
Samantha Rieb combined to toss a one-hitter in the game one win and Niagara pulled out a 1-0 victory in nine innings of the nightcap.
GAME ONE: IONA 2, NIAGARA 1
Kara Zazzaro had a perfect start to her afternoon, retiring the first six batters she faced via the strikeout. Zazzaro had it working and was handed a lead right out of the gates from her offense. Allie Taylor singled and Jamie Sheeran walked to start the bottom of the first, moving up to second and third on a passed ball. Jessica Chilcott singled home Taylor and Kayla Haywood brought Sheeran around to score on an error by the shortstop. Kaylin Flukey drew a one-out walk to load the bases but Niagara's Riley Crum escaped the jam with a double-play ball.
Two more Purple Eagles went down on strikes in the third inning, making it eight of Niagara's first nine hitters registering strikeouts against Zazzaro. She reached 10 punchouts in the fourth, retiring the side in order to keep her perfect game intact. Zazzaro began the fifth frame with her 11th strikeout of the day, then issued a free pass to grant Niagara its first base runner of the contest. An error and two more walks followed, pushing across a run for the visitors despite the goose egg in the hit column still. Rieb entered in the fifth to finish the frame, stranding the bases juiced and protecting Iona's one-run lead.
Rieb continued to protect the combined no-hitter, setting the side down in order in the sixth. Clinging onto the narrow 2-1 advantage, Rieb set Crum down on strikes to begin the seventh. Taylor dove to snag a sinking line drive in left, keeping the no-no alive for the moment. Down to their last strike, the Purple Eagles ended Iona's bid for a combined no-hitter. A line drive marked return to sender caromed off of Rieb and Shayna Myshrall scampered to first safely. Hannah Mingle pinch ran at first, representing the game-tying run, and was promptly thrown out after misjudging a ball in the dirt. Hannah Collins fired a dart and Morgan Ritchey applied the tag to end the game and secure a win for the Maroon & Gold in the opener.
GAME TWO: NIAGARA 1, IONA 0
The nightcap between the Gaels and the Purple Eagles was a barn burner. The two sides were locked into a pitcher's duel, with the lone run of the contest coming in extra frames.
Rieb, following her relief appearance and solid work in game one, headed to the circle to start game two for the Maroon & Gold. She was opposed by Niagara's Maddi Hickingbottom. Rieb made it through the first, but not without some resistance from the Purple Eagles. A pair of two-out singles placed runners on first and second in the opening frame, but Rieb struck out Crum looking to strand a pair in the first.
Sheeran worked a walk with one away in the bottom of the first, moving up to second on a passed ball, but was left out on the base paths after Hickingbottom got Emma Capuano to pop up and Chilcott to strike out. A one-out walk to Destiny Nardello in the second was again wasted away by Hickingbottom, who stranded her in scoring position with another backwards K to end the frame.
Two more singles in the third inning set up Niagara with an opportunity to break the scoreless tie, but Rieb notched a strikeout looking to leave two runners on base. Following the top of the third, 18 consecutive batters were retired between the two sides, advancing the game to the bottom of the sixth with still no score.
Natalia Meray reached base on a wild pitch after striking out to end the streak, but neither side registered a hit until Nardello's double with two outs in the bottom of the seventh. The hit was Iona's first of the day, mirroring what the Purple Eagles did in game one. The contest wasn't over after the seventh though, like it was in game one. Game two required extra frames to decide a winner.
The ninth inning began with an error on the infield, followed by a walk and a hit batter to load the bases with nobody out. With the infield drawn in, Kaity McInall blooped one over Ritchey's head into right, plating the game's first run and ending Rieb's afternoon for good. Maddy Lowry entered in a difficult situation, but pitched brilliantly to keep her squad within striking distance. Lowry induced three grounders, keeping Niagara at bay and sending things to the bottom of the ninth Iona trailing by just one run.
Julia Thompson, who relieved Hickingbottom in the eighth, looked to finish what her teammate started. She retired Capuano on the first pitch, then got Chilcott to roll over for the second out. Haywood worked the count full with two down, but grounded out to third to end the game. Niagara took game two and salvaged a split of the doubleheader in New Rochelle.Â
NOTABLE NUGGETS
- Zazzaro earned the victory in game one, improving her season mark to 10-7. She did not allow a hit across 4.1 innings, walking three and permitting an unearned run. She struck out 10, the tenth time this season she's reached double-figure punchouts.
- Rieb worked a total of 10.2 innings combined in the doubleheader, earning a tough-luck loss in game two. She scattered seven hits across the two games, walked just one and allowed an unearned run. Rieb registered a career-best six strikeouts in the game two start. She also locked down her fourth save of the season, tying her for the single-season program record, set back in 2018.
- Lowry inherited a bases-loaded jam with no outs in the ninth inning of game two, tossing a clean inning. It marked the fourth scoreless appearance of the season for the freshman from Howell, New Jersey.
- The two sides combined for four runs on just 12 hits during the entire doubleheader. In game one, Niagara did not register a hit until there were two outs in the seventh. Iona's first hit of game two did not come until there were two away in the seventh.
- Nardello started game two as the designated player, recording her first hit since her last start on April 4 at Rider.
- The only Gael to hit safely in both games today was lead-off hitter Allie Taylor. Sheeran was the only other Gael to reach safely in both contests, earning a walk in both games.Â
UP NEXT
Iona welcomes Canisius to Donald E. Walsh Field tomorrow for a doubleheader beginning at noon. Fans can follow along via live stats or watch live on Iona Insider.
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