MOON TOWNSHIP– The Colonials softball team (10-25, 3-3 NEC) will stay on their home field this week as they take on the Niagara Purple Eagles (4-21, 3-5 MAAC) on Tuesday, April 9th at 3 p.m. The Colonials last took on the Saint Francis Red Flash (16-22, 5-3 NEC) where they split the doubleheader on the road. The Purple Eagles last game was against the Canisius Golden Griffins (5-22, 3-3 MAAC). The Purple Eagles also ended their series with a weekend split.

Recapping RMU:

In the first game against the Red Flash, both teams scored two runs in the second inning, but in the third inning, the Red Flash pulled ahead by three runs. The Colonials battled back by scoring one run in the fourth, and two runs in the sixth. In the end, the Red Flash got the upper hand when they scored one run in the bottom of the sixth inning to put them ahead and win the game by a final score of 6-5.

In the second game, the Colonials got the bats going in the second inning as they scored seven runs which forced Red Flash pitcher Meadow Uncapher out of the game after only pitching 1.2 innings. The Colonials scoring continued in the sixth and seventh innings. They scored two runs in the sixth, plus three more runs in the seventh inning.

The Red Flash only scored in the first, fourth, and sixth inning, the team was only able to score four runs this game. The star players for the Colonials for the first game were Taylor Bartlow and Brittney Seibert. Bartlow had two hits and 1 RBI then Seibert added three hits with four RBIs. In the second game, the star players for the Colonials were Natalie Higgins and Taylor Bartlow. Higgins had four hits and four RBIs while Bartlow had two hits and four RBIs.

The star players for the Red Flash in the first game were Sierra McKee and Christina Clark. Clark pitched all seven innings and only gave up four earned runs while adding five strikeouts. Mckee helped the offense by getting two hits and three RBIs. In the second game for the Red Flash, the star players were Mekenzie Sadan and Mikayla Bower. Both Sadan and Bower had one hit with two RBIs.

Recapping NU:

In the first game against the Golden Griffins, the Purple Eagles scored four runs in the first three innings. The Golden Griffins didn’t score until the fifth inning when they scored five runs to take the lead and win the game.

In the second game, it was a pitching duel, but the Purple Eagles got the lead in the second inning when they were able to score one run. At the end of the game, that is all they needed for the win. The star players for the Purple Eagles in the first game were Sierra Bertrand and Maggie Vesneske. Bertrand pitched five innings and only gave up two earned runs with five strikeouts. Vesneske had three hits with one RBI.

The star players for the Golden Griffins were Emily Nicosia and Lindsi Dennis. Nicosia pitched all seven innings for the Golden Griffins and only allowed three earned runs with two strikeouts. In the second game for the Purple Eagles, the star player was Jennifer Szilagyi. Szilagyi pitched every inning in the tight game while only giving up five hits, and she had one strikeout. She also hit a single that scored the leading and eventual game-winning run. The star player for the Golden Griffins in the second game was Lauren Castro who also pitched the entire game but gave up one earned run with five strikeouts.

Players to watch:

Maggie Vesneske (NU): Vesneske leads the team in batting average .278 and a slugging percentage of .315. As a sophomore, she is already showing maturity at the plate, only striking out 10 times in 54 plate appearances.

Sierra Bertrand (NU): As a senior, Bertrand has the experience in the circle to keep batters guessing as to what she will throw in any count. She will give her team a fighting shot at winning the game by spinning her pitches away from batters to get swings and misses.

Abrielle McCartney (RMU): McCartney has been consistently getting on base and hitting runners in for the Colonials. She is disciplined at the plate, only being struck out 12 times this season and she hasn’t struck out in the last seven games. On the defensive side, she is almost perfect with only two errors this season.

Natalie Higgins (RMU): Higgins leads the team in batting average with a .302 mark, and she has six home runs this season. She comes in with clutch hits to get runners across the plate, but she also is very patient at the plate, getting walked six times and being hit by a pitch once.

Prediction:

I think the Colonials will defeat Purple Eagles in both games and start to get back into the groove after a very rough start to the season. The Colonials next game is against the Youngstown State Penguins (16-19) on Wednesday, April 10th at 3 p.m.