Game One Box Score
Game Two Box Score
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ALBANY, N.Y. - The Manhattan College softball team picked up its first road win of the season on Wednesday, notching a 3-1 victory over Albany in the first game of a doubleheader at Albany Field. The Jaspers (3-22) couldn't complete the sweep, however, as the Great Danes (25-8) recorded an 8-2 win in game two.
Albany, which entered the twinbill on an 11-game winning streak and ranked 25th in the NCAA Division I Mid-Major Poll, got on the board first in game one. The Great Danes broke a scoreless tie on Taylor Franich's RBI single in the bottom of the fourth. Franich then stole third with one out, but Kate Bowen (Newtown, Conn.) retired Charlise Castro and Katie Wambold to get out of the inning.
In the top of the sixth, Bowen helped her own cause with a game-tying solo home run to right center. Manhattan then took the lead with a pair of runs in the top of the seventh. Jocelin Whitmore (La Habra, Calif.) started the rally with a one-out bunt single, and Jen Keller (Woodridge, N.J.) followed with a base hit to left field. After the runners moved to second and third on an error, Mickayla Romero (Las Vegas, Nev.) came to the plate, and she delivered a two-run double that put the Jaspers in front 3-1.
Bowen allowed a one-out single in the bottom of the seventh, bringing the tying run to the plate. However, Kylie Apostolina flied to right, then Alexa Toole hit a grounder to third to end the contest and give Manhattan its second straight victory.
Bowen (2-6) tossed a complete game, giving up one run and five hits. She also went 1-for-3 at the plate with her team-leading third home run of the season. Romero was 2-for-3 with a pair of RBIs, while Whitmore and Keller each had a hit and a run scored.
The 1-5 hitters in the Albany lineup all went 1-for-3, with Franich recording the Great Danes' only RBI and Diane MacDowell scoring Albany's only run. Brittany Schwieger (10-3) pitched well in a losing effort. She went the distance in the circle, surrendering three runs and five hits while striking out 11 and walking one.
Albany jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first inning of game two, but the Jaspers got one back in the top of the second when Meghan McDevitt (Nutley, N.J.) blasted a leadoff homer to left field. However, Toole responded with a solo home run of her own in the bottom half of the inning. Albany then increased its cushion to 8-1 with a four-spot in the bottom of the fourth.
It would remain that way until the top of the seventh, when Manhattan pushed another run across. McDevitt started the inning with a double to center, and she scored on an RBI double by Whitmore. Whitmore then stole third, but was left stranded, as Albany notched an 8-2 victory.
As a team, the Jaspers collected seven hits in game two. McDevitt went 2-for-3 with two runs scored and an RBI, while Amanda Babcock (Haverstraw, N.Y.) was also 2-for-3 at the plate. Amy Bright (Manlius, N.Y.) (1-6) started in the circle and took the loss. She surrendered seven runs (four earned) and four hits while striking out six in 3.2 innings. Kelsi Redding (Tucson, Ariz.) allowed one run on three hits, struck out three and walked three over 2.1 innings of work.
For the Great Danes, Toole went 2-for-2 with two runs scored and an RBI, while Franich was 2-for-3 with a pair of runs and one driven in. Vicky McFarland also crossed the plate twice for Albany. Allie Weiser (2-2) went the first five innings in the circle and earned the win. She yielded one run on four hits and struck out one. Krystn Benson gave up one run and three hits while striking out three and walking one over the final two innings.
The Jaspers (0-2 MAAC) return to the Capital Region on Saturday, when the resume their Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) schedule with a 1 p.m. doubleheader at Siena (7-20, 0-2 MAAC).
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