CLERMONT, Fla. – The Plattsburgh State softball team dropped two games in a split doubleheader, first galling to Simpson College 10-1, and then to Ramapo College 8-0 in what were both run-rule-shortened games on day two of THE Spring Games in Clermont, Florida.
The Cardinals fall to 1-3 with the pair of losses and next take on UW-River Falls tomorrow, March 18 at 2 p.m. Simpson moves to 7-1 on the season and gets tomorrow off before playing Southern Maine on Wednesday, March 19. Ramapo continues a fantastic start to their season, moving to 5-0 and next take on UW-La Crosse on Wednesday, March 19.
Game One: Simpson 10, Plattsburgh 1 (5 innings)
The Simpson College Storm scored four times in both the first and second innings, as they set the stage for a 10-1 win over Plattsburgh. Defense haunted the Cards as seven of the ten runs scored were unearned in game one.
First-year
Meghan Stork (Massapequa, N.Y./Massapequa) finished the day 1-2 with a stolen base, while junior
Megan Pillus (Poughkeepsie, N.Y./Spackenkill) was 1-2 with a run scored and sophomore
Leila Toomey (Commack, N.Y./Commack) drove in the Cards only run. Junior
Morgan Ormerod (Valatie, N.Y./Ichabod Crane) pitched three innings of solid relief, allowing no earned runs and striking out two.
In the first two innings, Simpson scored eight runs, with five of them of the unearned variety to give them a big 8-0 advantage before the Cards could even get four batters to the plate.
Two more unearned runs scored for the Storm, pushing their lead to 10-1.
In the fifth, the Cardinal offense finally got going, as Pillus and sophomore Michelle Defina (Commack, N.Y./Commack) each reached singles, with Pillus advancing to third on DeFina's base-hit. Toomey then followed with an RBI groundout to get the Cards on the board, but that would be all they could put together as they fell 10-1.
Emma LaFave picked up her third win of the season for Simpson with five strong innings, allowing just five hits and one run while striking out three. Megan Heidelbauer was 2-4 on the day with two runs scored and two RBI, while Katie Shaner was 3-4 with an RBI and a run scored.
Game Two: Ramapo 8, Plattsburgh 0 (5 innings)
In game two, Ramapo used an eight-run fourth inning to pick up a run-rule win over the Cardinals in Clermont, Florida. Ormerod threw three solid innings to start the game, allowing just one hit, but the Cardinal bullpen allowed eight runs in the fourth for the second loss of the day.
Pillus and DeFina each had another base hit in game two, while sophomore
Emma Deo (Averill Park, N.Y./Averill Park) also added a hit for the Cards.
Kassy Stefanski threw three scoreless innings in her start for Ramapo, while Brooke Knight earned the win with two scoreless innings of relief. Katie Rygiel was 2-3 with two RBI for the Roadrunners, while Hannah Hensler and Emily Reilly drove in two runs as well.
The first three innings of action were quick, as neither team sent more than four batters to the plate in one inning or had multiple people reach base as the game was scoreless entering the fourth.
A 1-2-3 top half of the frame set up Ramapo's big inning as they scored eight runs on four hits, four walks, and one error, highlighted by Rygiel's two-run double to make it 7-0.
In the fifth, Pillus had a one-out single to try and keep the game moving for Plattsburgh, but a game-ending double play sealed the win for Ramapo.
