Game One Box Score
Game Two Box Score
RIVERDALE, N.Y. - Over the years, Canisius has been a thorn in the side of the Manhattan College softball team. In fact, the Griffs entered Saturday's doubleheader on a 13-game winning streak against the Lady Jaspers. That all changed in game one, as Erika Sullivan (Bay Shore, N.Y.) tossed a three-hitter in a 5-1 Lady Jaspers victory over the defending Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) champion Golden Griffins at Gaelic Park. It wasn't a Manhattan (13-15-1, 1-3 MAAC) sweep, however, as Canisius (20-14, 4-2 MAAC) notched a 5-2 win in the second game of the doubleheader.
The Lady Jaspers jumped in front early in game one, putting three runs on the board in the bottom of the first. After back-to-back singles by Monica Evangelista (Cedar Grove, N.J.) and Melissa Donnelly (Long Beach, N.Y.), an RBI double by Jaci Rahey (West Milford, N.J.) gave Manhattan a 1-0 lead. Nicole Michel (Massapequa, N.Y.) followed with a popup to left center that dropped in for an RBI double, then Melissa Cascio (Kings Park, N.Y.) lifted a sacrifice fly to right that made it 3-0.
Canisius got a run back on Katie Lancellotti's solo home run in the top of the second, but Manhattan took advantage of a Canisius error to post another run in the bottom half of the inning. The Lady Jaspers increased their lead to 5-1 in the bottom of the fourth. Sullivan started the rally with a one-out single. She stole second and moved to third on a wild pitch, then scored on Kristina Walraven's (Thompson Ridge, N.Y.) groundout.
That was more than enough offense for Sullivan, who was masterful in the circle. After an Amanda Cannizzo single in the second, Sullivan retired 13 straight Griffs before Michelle Fridey's leadoff double in the seventh. She struck out four and didn't walk a batter in a complete game effort. Sullivan (9-4) gave up just one run, Lancellotti's homer, and three hits. Sullivan also had two of the Lady Jaspers' eight hits. Evangelista was the only other Manhattan player with two hits, going 2-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored.
Amanda Baun (11-9) got the start for Canisius and went the first four innings. She yielded five runs (four earned) on six hits, struck out five and walked four. Cannizzo tossed two scoreless innings for the Griffs, surrendering two hits and walking one.
In the second game, Canisius got on the board first with an unearned tally in the top of the third. Katie Medina started the inning with an infield single, and she came across after a pair of Manhattan errors. The Griffs added a pair runs in the top of the fifth to increase their lead to 3-0. Manhattan got within 3-1 in the bottom of the sixth when Walraven led off the inning with a shot to center that hit the top of the fence and bounced over for a home run.
However, the Griffs put another two runs on the board in the top of the seventh. Lauren Hope walked leading off the inning, then moved to second on a sacrifice bunt. The Lady Jaspers thought they picked Hope off second when she wandered too far off the base following the sacrifice, and she was originally called out, which would've been the second out of the inning. However, she was ruled safe after Canisius appealed. That overturned call proved to be big, as Paige Freiberger followed with a two-run homer to right that gave the Griffs a 5-1 lead.
In the bottom of the seventh, Ashley Rampino (Manalapan, N.J.) crushed a long home run to left center to make it a 5-2 game, but the Lady Jaspers were unable to put a rally together, and the Griffs held on for the doubleheader split.
Walraven went 2-for-3 at the plate in game two, while Donnelly and Sullivan each had a hit. Donnelly (2-6) started in the circle and went the first five innings. She yielded three runs (two earned) and five hits, struck out four and walked two. Rampino surrendered two runs on one hit while striking out two and walking two in two innings.
Six different Griffs each had one hit in the second game. Freiberger drove in a pair of runs, while Hope scored twice. Lizzy Gatto went 1-for-2 with a run scored and an RBI. Caroline Main (9-5) went the distance in the circle, giving up two runs and five hits while striking out five and walking two.
Manhattan returns to action on Sunday, when it hosts Niagara (10-12, 3-1 MAAC) in a 9 a.m. doubleheader. The Lady Jaspers swept the twinbill at Niagara last season, but were eliminated from the MAAC Tournament with a 7-1 loss to the Purple Eagles.
Due to technical difficulties, the live webcast of the doubleheader was unavailable. The Manhattan Athletic Department apologizes for the inconvenience.
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