Box Score CALDWELL, N.J. (Apr. 22, 2016) – The Molloy College softball team lost the first game of a doubleheader on Friday (Apr. 22) to No. 17 Caldwell by a final score of 6-1. The Lions jumped out to an early 1-0 lead in the second game of the day, but the Cougars ultimately prevailed by a final score of 8-3 to take the sweep.
Game One: Caldwell 6, Molloy 1
The home Cougars (31-11) jumped on Lions starting pitcher
Chelsea Hawks (Wading River, N.Y.) with a three-run first inning as senior Brielle Reighn (Runnemeade, N.J.) hit a run-scoring single that was immediately followed by a two-run home run off the bat of sophomore catcher Marisa Monasseri (Monroe, N.J.). Molloy (26-22) got a run back in the top of the second inning as sophomore catcher
Alexandra Russo (Coram, N.Y.) doubled home
Brianna Dalton (Northampton, Pa.) to bring the maroon and white within a 3-1 deficit. That would be as close as the Lions got, however, as senior pitcher Amber Padilla (Chino, Calif.) tossed a complete-game five-hitter with eight strikeouts and silenced the bats of the Molloy players. The Cougars tacked on runs in the third, fourth and sixth innings to etch the final margin of 6-1 into the books. Dalton went 2-for-3 for Molloy and Russo's double brought home the lone run for the Lions in the losing effort.
Game Two: Caldwell 8, Molloy 3
The Lions scored the first run of the game against Caldwell starter Sydney Ponto (West Deptford, N.J.) in the top of the second inning. With two outs and runners at the corners, sophomore centerfielder
Olivia Banulski (Bristol, Conn.) singled through the right side of the infield to score
Sarah Rambo (Eagleville, Pa.) and give Molloy a 1-0 lead. Molloy starting pitcher
Jenna Turato (Garden City South, N.Y.) cruised through the first four innings with the one-run lead, but the Lions ran into some trouble in the bottom of the fifth. Consecutive bunt singles by Caitlin McCready (Jupiter, Fla.) and Amy Hickman (Jackson, N.J.) put two runners on base for Caldwell in the frame; a sacrifice bunt by Reighn moved both into scoring position. Monasseri, the reigning Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference Player of the Week, stepped to the plate and shot her second home run of the day over the left-field fence. A three-run blast from the sophomore catcher gave the hosts a 3-1 lead.
In the sixth inning, freshman Katie Nichols (Acworth, Ga.) launched a pinch-hit two-run home run off of
Tracey Balinskas (Edison, N.J.) to give Caldwell a 5-1 lead; the Cougars then tacked on three more runs thanks to a run-scoring single from Monasseri, a bases-loaded walk by Carly Testa (Sicklerville, N.J.) and an RBI groundout off the bat of Kiahna Silva (Etiwanda, Calif.) to close the scoring for the Cougars. The maroon and white put up a small rally in the top of the seventh inning, as Russo doubled in two runs to provide the final margin.
In the second game, Dalton and
Milan Botte (Reston, Va.) each had two hits while Russo drove in a team-high two runs. Turato threw four solid innings and had one bad frame, but ultimately the freshman took the loss in allowing four runs on nine hits with three strikeouts.
Molloy will return to conference action on Saturday (Apr. 23) when the Lions head out to Shirley, N.Y. to face the Golden Lions of Dowling College in a doubleheader beginning at 12:30 p.m.
