In the second game of the Saturday afternoon doubleheader, Marist softball completed the sweep by winning another 7-3 contest over Canisius.
Marist won the first game of the doubleheader on a thrilling, late-inning comeback. Redshirt sophomore utility Haley Ahr hit a clutch, two-out, game-tying home run in the bottom of the seventh, then senior utility Miah McDonald walked it off with a homer in the bottom of the eighth in game one.
“Obviously they’re a really good team, so we couldn’t take them lightly just because we beat them in the first game,” said graduate student pitcher Kiley Myers.
Canisius, looking to put the heartbreaking loss behind them, jumped out to an early lead in game two.
On the mound in the second game of the doubleheader for the Red Foxes, senior pitcher/utility Maddie Pleasants struck out three in the first inning, but issued two walks that came back to haunt her. With two outs, sophomore infielder Morgan Cook singled to put Canisius uo 1-0.
Pleasants helped her own cause, pulling a three-run homer down the left-field line in the bottom half of the first inning to put the Red Foxes ahead by two.
Canisius kept the pressure on Pleasants, with a single by junior infielder Emily Ilano and a walk to junior outfielder Alyssa Cloutier creating traffic on the basepaths with two outs. Senior catcher/infielder Gianna Fazzolari chased Pleasants with a single to left field to score both runners and tie the game.
Marist head coach Joe Ausanio pulled Pleasants in favor of freshman pitcher/outfielder Anna Sidlowski, who limited the damage by retiring the first batter she faced to keep the game tied at three.
“She hasn’t thrown for two weeks,” said Ausanio, regarding Sidlowski, who recently suffered a knee injury. “She threw a bullpen the other day and said ‘I feel good,’ so we wanted to ease her in.”
McDonald, just as she did to end the first game of the doubleheader, broke the 3-3 tie with a home run. This one, a no-doubter to left-center field, forced a Canisius pitching change; freshman Liv Herrington replaced junior Toria Kover in the circle.
The top of the fourth inning started with a 12-pitch at bat resulting in a walk to senior infielder Sydney Costan, who was quickly erased when she attempted to steal second. Sophomore catcher/utility Isabella Manory’s throw, right on the money, sent Costan back to the dugout. Sidlowski got through the inning unscathed, facing the minimum of batters possible after entering in relief during the second inning.
With two down in the bottom of the inning, Ahr roped a line drive into left-center field; McGee-Ross sprinted over and laid out, but the ball bounced off her glove. Two runs scored to extend the Marist lead to a more comfortable three runs, as Ahr scooted into third.
The Red Foxes added some increased insurance an inning later, thanks to a Manory single up the middle. Marist looked to tack on some more runs when junior infielder Ronni Howard yanked one down the third base line, but a diving catch from Cook ended the inning.
Sidlowski continued cruising, finishing the game without allowing a hit and helping to nail down a 7-3 Marist win. In 5.1 innings of relief work, Sidlowski effectively pitched to contact, striking out only one batter, yet only issuing one walk.
“I’m really proud of her,” said Ausanio. “She picked Maddie [Pleasants] up and luckily we got a win out of that.”
Marist will attempt to cement their separation from Canisius in the MAAC conference standings when they go for the season sweep tomorrow at 12 p.m.
Edited by Luke Sassa
Photo credit: Luke Sassa
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