Blue Devils Outplay Orange in Series Opener

By Spencer Pierce

CitrusTV’s Softball Beat Reporter

The Syracuse Orange softball team kicked off their ACC season against #14 Duke on Friday evening, and the game went just as expected – with the Orange falling to the Blue Devils, 5-3.

The scoring started early, with Duke scoring in the bottom of the 2nd due to an Alexa Romero passed ball. Syracuse would have an immediate answer, though, as Angel Jasso singled to shortstop, scoring Gabby Teran.

Duke would break the tie in the bottom of the 3rd inning, when Caroline Jacobsen roped a double to right-center field, scoring just one.

At this point, starting pitcher Alexa Romero has been taken out, as she only pitched 2 innings, allowing three walks, one earned run, and striking out none.

This has been a continuous pattern for the Orange, as their plan to rely on Romero’s star power hasn’t worked out this year.

In the 4th, Duke added another run off of an RBI single, extending the lead to 3-1. At this point, the Orange looked helpless, as they were barely putting the ball in play. This didn’t change for a while, as Duke then tacked on two more runs in the bottom of the 6th inning due to a fielder’s choice and an RBI groundout.

The Orange were able to make things interesting in the 7th inning when Calista Almer doubled to left field, scoring one. Angel Jasso reached on a throwing error which scored another Orange runner, making the score 5-3, but this would be the end of the scoring for Syracuse, as the final score ended in a Duke victory, 5-3.

Jolie Gustave had a decent outing for the Orange, giving up three earned runs, walking one, and striking out none.

The Orange have a doubleheader against the Blue Devils tomorrow, with the first game starting at 2 p.m.

swpierce@syr.edu | @swlp91