Utica, NY – The SUNY Brockport softball team split the doubleheader with Utica on Sunday, taking game one before dropping game two. The Golden Eagles are now 11-9 overall on the season with a 9-1 mark in the Empire 8.
After pulling out the win in game one, Brockport earned a 9-0 start to the conference slate for the first time in over 30 years. Head Coach
Mary Karen Wheat gets Team 50 off to a rapid start in the Empire 8, while already passing the team's conference win total combined from the past two years. Brockport is currently sitting in second in the E8 Standings at 9-1 with 18 points.
Brockport 9, Utica 6 – Game 1 Final
Both teams saw some early offense, with Utica taking a quick 2-0 lead. Brockport tied the game up at 2-2 in the second, but the Pioneers tallied two more for a 4-2 lead going into the fourth. From there the Brockport bats booked back-to-back, 3-run innings to give the squad a 8-4 lead. Utica attempted to rally with a pair of runs in the sixth, but an insurance run for Brockport in the seventh sealed the 9-6 win.
The top half of the lineup was fantastic in game one, with 1-5 combining for 11 hits and 9 RBIs. Hitting leadoff in a big way,
Natalie Faas went 4-for-4 with a walk and two runs batted in.
Julia Hill was 2-for-3 with two RBIs and was credited with a pair of sac flys.
Caitlyn Dailey and Collen Davis both went 2-for-4 with two RBIs. In the nine spot,
Erin Dougherty was 2-for-2 with two walks and three runs scored.
Liana DeValder (W, 7-2) picked up her seventh win of the season, pitching yet another complete game victory for the Golden Eagles. At the plate she also contributed to her own cause with a 1-for-4 effort, including a double and one run batted in.
Brockport 1, Utica 9 – Game 2 Final
The second game of the set was a different story, as Brockport had just two hits in the contest.
Natalie Faas was 1-for-3 in the leadoff spot again.
Liana DeValder keeps swinging well, going 1-for-2 with a double.
Reagan Myers had a sac fly for an RBI, bringing in the team's lone run.
Utica scored two in the second to go up early, but Brockport put one on the board to answer in the fourth. A 3-run homer in the fourth for Utica made it a 5-1 lead for the Pioneers. They then added four more runs in the bottom of the fifth to make it a 9-1 lead, ending the game in five.
Hadley Alguire (L, 0-2) started in the circle for the Green and Gold for game two. She went 3.0 innings in a losing effort on the road.
Makenna Hart stepped in as the reliever to finish out the final 1.2 innings.
The Golden Eagles take a quick step outside of conference play on Wednesday, traveling to RIT to make up a previously postponed doubleheader. Game time for the first of the set is scheduled for 3pm out in Rochester.
