SU Splits First Two Games of Weekend Series
By Sam Rothman
It only took Syracuse (14-8) five innings to come away with a 12-0 victory against Virginia (9-18) on Friday. However, on Saturday it would be a completely different story. Coming off its dominating win, the Orange fell to the Cavaliers 9-8 in a close eleven-inning duel Saturday.
Syracuse started the game right where it left off on Friday and struck first. Alicia Hansen doubled and ran home off of Bryce Holmgren’s RBI single to give Syracuse the early 1-0 lead. The junior would be a major factor throughout the game and ended the day with two runs and three RBI.
The Orange extended its lead in the following inning. After starting out the second with a walk, Hannah Dossett advanced to third on Lailoni Mayfield’s double. Dossett then ran home off of a wild pitch for Syracuse’s second run of the contest. Mayfield had also advanced to third on the wild pitch and then scored off of a Virginia error. The Orange capitalized on the Cavaliers’ six errors on Friday and would do the same to grab a 3-0 advantage.
Toni Martin added to Syracuse’s lead in the third. Martin singled, stole second and advanced to third on a fielder’s choice. Mayfield then drove in Martin on a single for her second RBI of the game and the Orange’s fourth run.
Before the bottom of the third inning, Syracuse had not given up a hit to Virginia through seven innings of weekend play. However, that would change as Molly Keshin recorded the Cavaliers first hit of the series with a triple. Keshin got it done and scored off of an RBI groundout to grab Virginia’s first run of the weekend.
Just as the fifth inning was dominated by the Orange on Friday, the fifth was a strong inning for the Cavaliers on Saturday. With bases loaded and two outs, Alexa Romero replaced AnnaMarie Gatti on the mound. Romero was coming off of her no-hitter the previous day, but Virginia was seeking revenge in the rematch. The Cavaliers scored three straight runs and quickly tied the game at four.
Neither team would strike again in the final two innings, and the game headed to extra innings. In the tenth, Syracuse broke the tie as Alicia Hansen led the charge. Hansen tripled and drove in Fernandez, Mayfield and Dossett. The junior then ran home off of Holmgren’s single to double the Orange’s lead to 8-4.
However, Syracuse’s four runs in the top of the inning would not be enough to end it. Virginia also crossed home four times in the bottom of the inning to tie the game for the second time.
Hannah Dossett advanced to third base to start off the eleventh inning, but Syracuse couldn’t convert and left the window open for Virginia. The Cavaliers grabbed the game-winning run on Lacy Smith’s two-out homerun. Syracuse gave up a season-high nine runs in the matchup.
The weekend series concludes tomorrow at 12 p.m.
