Marist softball scored 11 runs in both wins against Lafayette on Friday in Easton, Pennsylvania. The Red Foxes (21-5) bullied the Panthers (0-18) in 11-2 and 11-1 victories to extend their win streak to 10.
Redshirt junior first baseman Haley Ahr led Marist offensively, recording seven hits and reaching base safely nine times in 10 plate appearances. Senior Maddie Pleasants only needed four innings in game two to record 10 strikeouts and helped her cause with a homer.
“[Ahr’s] just such a good hitter, she’s fun to watch. That’s honestly why she hits behind Miah [McDonald]. We have a little protection for Miah there with her, and then Maddie P, protecting her,” said Marist head coach Joe Ausanio.
“It’s a great problem to have when you have somebody like Maddie P with double-digit home runs, Haley hitting over .500 protecting Miah, who’s got 14 home runs, protecting Pep who’s hitting .400.”
Sophomore pitcher Anna Sidlowski started the opening game opposite freshman pitcher Sophia Alvarez-Backus. Sidlowski entered the matchup with a 2.97 ERA compared to Alvarez-Backus’ 13.76 ERA. Lafayette took a first-inning lead but the stark ERA differences became apparent quickly.
Sidlowski’s throwing error on a comebacker allowed senior right fielder Mary Grace O’Neill to reach first base. O’Neill immediately displayed her speed, stealing second and third to get herself into scoring position. Sidlowski fielded a second comebacker cleanly but O’Neill charged home on the throw and slid in safely, giving the Leopards a 1-0 lead.
That lead dissolved quickly as Marist put up at least two runs in all but one of the following innings while tallying 19 hits and five home runs. Every Marist starter recorded a hit in the 11-2 victory.
“Believe it or not, I still think there’s room for improvement there because I felt like we took a lot of strikes that I thought were hittable pitches,” said Ausanio.
“I talk about plate discipline and making sure that we’re picking good pitches to hit, and when they do, they’re tough and a fun bunch to watch.”
Two seniors at the bottom of the lineup began the offensive barrage for Marist. Third baseman Ronni Howard and right fielder Kaitlyn Husic went back-to-back to take the lead in the second inning at 2-1.
Howard knotted the game at one, sending a solo shot over the right-center field fence for her first home run of the season and Husic followed with a homer to center field.
Ahr and Pleasants stood in scoring position after recording base hits and advancing on a sac bunt by freshman second baseman Sienna Kunze. Sophomore left fielder Samantha Rogers entered the batter’s box with three hits in her previous 19 at-bats.
Rogers split the right-center gap for a two-run double, extending Marist’s lead to 4-1 in the third inning.
O’Neill continued menacing the Red Foxes, doubling and stealing third in the bottom of the inning before crossing home plate for her and Lafayette’s second run. Marist once again responded the next inning.
Husic and junior center fielder Peyton Pusey recorded their second hits of the game, bringing graduate student shortstop Miah McDonald to the plate.
McDonald went opposite field, smacking a three-run home run to give Marist a 7-2 lead. McDonald’s 13th homer of the season tied her for the lead of most home runs in the nation; that tie did not last long.
The Red Foxes threatened for more against sophomore pitcher Parker Rowden, who entered in relief for Alvarez-Backus a batter later. Marist loaded the bases with no outs but Rowden struck out two, escaping further damage.
McDonald came to the plate in the fifth and added two more runs to Marist’s 9-2 lead. The graduate student sent the first pitch she saw for a ride to center for a no-doubt two-run blast and her fourth and fifth RBIs of the game.
Her second home run of the game and 14th of the season gave McDonald sole possession as the nation’s home run leader.
“To go into conference play next week with 14 home runs, it’s mind-blowing,” said Ausanio.
“Miah is a very special player. We’ve had some outstanding players that have come through Marist. But, I’ve always said that Miah has the potential to be the best player this conference has ever seen. She just proves it every day, and she has just continually gotten better each and every year.”
Senior pitcher Isabella Milazzo relieved Sidlowski after allowing two hits and two unearned runs over four innings. Milazzo induced soft contact and the defense executed over three innings, highlighted by a beautiful glove flip from Kunze to McDonald for an inning-ending double-play in the sixth.
Marist entered double digits in the seventh as Pleasants stroked a two-run blast over the left field fence for an 11-2 Marist lead; Milazzo finished the Leopards in a 1-2-3 seventh.
Pleasants entered the circle for game two and shredded through the Lafayette lineup. Over four innings, Pleasants struck out the side three times on her way to double-digit strikeouts for the third time this season.
“I’m proud of Maddie who, this year, has really been that pitcher I always thought she was going to be. When I recruited her as a pitcher, not as much as a hitter, I said, ‘she has the potential to be the best pitcher that’s ever come through the MAAC.’ The fact that she’s showing these brilliant performances, it’s fun to sit back and watch and call the game for her,” said Ausanio.
Husic and Pusey doubled for their third hits of the day. Ahr drove them home, squeezing a base hit past a diving effort from freshman second baseman Jocelyn O’Keefe to give Marist a 2-0 lead.
Junior third baseman Dani Rosner let a Husic grounder go right through her legs, allowing Howard to score from second and add a run to Marist’s 3-0 lead. The third Lafayette error became a trend for the Leopards later in the game.
Pleasants’ command wavered in the fourth inning, walking the first two batters she faced and throwing multiple wild pitches. Freshman shortstop Caroline Hall doubled just out of reach for Husic, bringing in the Leopards’ first run of the game.
With no outs and two runners in scoring position, Pleasants battled back and struck out the next three batters to keep the game at 3-1. Freshman pitcher Emma Bayor took over in the circle for Pleasants in the fifth; Pleasants got the run back at the plate.
After Ahr’s seventh hit of the day, Pleasants homered to the opposite field for her tenth of the season, putting Marist up 5-1. Bayor faced trouble but a diet of offspeed pitches kept Lafayette off the board, tallying two strikeouts and a weak ground ball to end the fifth.
Lafayette’s sloppy defense made three errors in the sixth, allowing three more runs to cross and the Red Foxes scored on two wild pitches and a McDonald base hit in the seventh. Bayor finished her relief duties with four strikeouts across three innings and Pleasants earned her seventh win of the season.
“Excited for MAAC play and hoping to keep everything firing on all cylinders. We gave the kids off for the next few days, treating it like an all-star break. Hopefully, they come back ready to rock and roll,” said Ausanio.
The Red Foxes begin MAAC play on Saturday, March 22, against Saint Peter’s in Jersey City; the first pitch is scheduled for noon.
Edited by Cara Lacey
Photo from Marist Athletics
Graphic by Cara Lacey
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