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Iona University Athletics

ICSB
Matthew Rankin - Iona Athletics
11
Winner Fairfield FFD 19-20, 10-5 MAAC
5
Iona College ION 19-20, 8-7 MAAC
Winner
Fairfield FFD
19-20, 10-5 MAAC
11
Final
5
Iona College ION
19-20, 8-7 MAAC
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E
Fairfield FFD 4 0 2 0 0 3 2 11 14 1
Iona College ION 0 0 1 3 0 0 1 5 11 1

W: Lindsay, Sam (3-2) L: Rieb, Samantha (6-7)

1
Winner Fairfield FFD 20-20, 11-5 MAAC
0
Iona College ION 19-21, 8-8 MAAC
Winner
Fairfield FFD
20-20, 11-5 MAAC
1
Final
0
Iona College ION
19-21, 8-8 MAAC
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 R H E
Fairfield FFD 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 3 0
Iona College ION 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 0

W: Taylor, Bailey (4-6) L: Zazzaro, Kara (10-9)

Game Recap: Softball | | Jack Clark

Iona SB Drops Pair of Games to Fairfield on Saturday

NEW ROCHELLE, NY - The Iona College softball team was swept by Fairfield on Saturday afternoon at Donald E. Walsh Field. The Stags won the first game 11-5 and completed the sweep with a 1-0 victory in eleven innings in the nightcap.

GAME ONE: FAIRFIELD 11, IONA 5

The Stags started fast in game one, putting up a four-spot in the top of the first against Iona starter Samantha Rieb. The first four batters reached safely against Rieb, putting Fairfield up 1-0 early on. The Stags' first out of the inning was a productive one, a sacrifice fly to right by Lauryn Rhinehart. Mikayla Rubin singled home a run and a fielder's choice brought around Fairfield's fourth run before Rieb got Drew Westford to fly out and end the opening frame.

Singles from Jamie Sheeran and Emma Capuano eventually allowed Iona to put runners on second and third with just one out, but Katie Kudlacik got a huge second out with a strikeout of Jess Chilcott. She induced a grounder off the bat of Kayla Haywood to keep the Gaels off the scoreboard in the first.

After a quiet second inning, Fairfield got to Rieb once more in the third. A lead-off single was followed by a triple down the line, scoring the game's fifth run and ending Rieb's afternoon. Maddy Lowry relieved her with nobody out in the third, inheriting a runner at third base. The inherited runner would score on a squeeze play by Fairfield, who led 6-0 after two and a half innings in New Rochelle.

The Maroon & Gold got on the board in the home half of the third, seeing Fairfield trade a run for an out on a grounder off the bat of Capuano. The Gaels closed the gap further with three runs in the fourth. Brianna Bailey singled home pinch-runner Haley Weaver to start the scoring. Natalia Meray, who reached on a single earlier, scored on a wild pitch. Capuano cashed in with a run-scoring single that chased Kudlacik from the contest. Sam Lindsay entered with the bases juiced and a two-run lead, retiring Chilcott to end the frame and strand the tying and go-ahead runs on base.

After a scoreless fifth inning, Fairfield added much needed insurance in the sixth. The entire rally for the visitors came with two outs. It started with a single and a stolen base, followed by a single that made it 7-4 in favor of the Stags. One more single, followed by a two-bagger pushed across two more runs before Rhinehart flew out to end the inning. Fairfield led 9-4 heading to the bottom of the sixth.

The Stags tacked on two more in the seventh, heading into the final half inning with a seven-run advantage. Iona pinch hit Brianna Buck to begin the seventh; she promptly sent the second pitch she saw over the fence in left, her first homer of the 2022 season. It was all the Gaels had left in the tank, dropping the opener to Fairfield, 11-5. 

GAME TWO: FAIRFIELD 1, IONA 0

Kara Zazzaro took to the circle for game two, facing off with Fairfield's Rhinehart. Both pitchers dealt through seven innings, seeing the game go to extras with just five combined hits between the two sides.

Zazzaro punched out two batters in each of the first four innings of game two, surrendering just one hit during that stretch to start her afternoon. The Gaels' first hit of game two came in the bottom of the second, a two-out double off the bat of Meray. After Bailey worked a walk, Rhinehart stranded a pair of runners by getting Hannah Collins to fly out.

With two runners on and two away in the bottom of the third, Fairfield elected to intentionally walk Chilcott to face Destiny Nardello in a scoreless game. The move paid off for Fairfield, who saw Rhinehart get Nardello to fly out and strand the bases loaded.

In a scoreless game in the bottom of the seventh, Iona put two runners on base with nobody out. Bailey started things with a base on balls, followed by a bunt single by Weaver, pinch hitting for Collins. Kaylin Flukey hit for Buck and flew out in foul territory down the left-field line, but it wasn't deep enough to advance the runners. Rhinehart escaped the jam by getting Allie Taylor and Sheeran to ground out, sending the nightcap to extra frames.

Iona's greatest chance at a walk-off win came in the bottom of the eighth. Capuano singled to shortstop, who made a great stop deep in the hole but did not have enough time to make a throw to first. She moved up sixty feet on a sacrifice bunt by Chilcott. Meray walked to fill first, then Bailey singled to right, but Capuano was held up rounding third after a perfect strike was fired to the catcher from right. A grounder back to Rhinehart ended the inning and kept Fairfield alive.

The Stags finally broke through in the 11th, plating the game's only run on a Kaitlin Hoffman double to the wall in left center. Rieb relieved Zazzaro at that point, working out of the inning and stranding two more potential runs on base. Iona went down in order in the home half of the 11th, falling in the nightcap, 1-0.

NOTABLE NUGGETS

  • Zazzaro struck out 13 batters in her 10.1 innings of work in the second game, allowing just the one run. She now boasts a career-best 203 strikeouts this season and becomes just the third different Gael to reach that mark in a single season in program history.
  • Capuano hit safely in three of her four plate appearances in game one, driving in a pair of runs. It was the fourth time this season she has registered three hits in a game and her seventh multi-hit game overall in 2022.
  • Bailey was the only other Gael to notch multiple hits in a single game today, grabbing two hits in the game one loss.
  • Buck hit a pinch-hit homer in the bottom of the seventh of game one, her second career home run.
  • Bailey, Capuano, Meray and Sheeran all hit safely in both contests today.

UP NEXT

Iona welcomes Quinnipiac to Donald E. Walsh Field for a noon doubleheader tomorrow. Both games will be streamed live on ESPN3.

SOCIAL MEDIA

Be sure to follow Iona College athletics on all social media platforms:
ICGaels: Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube (E-Mail Updates)
Iona Softball: Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube (E-Mail Updates)



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