Box Score
Box Score
FAIRFIELD, Conn. – The clock struck midnight on the Manhattan College softball team on Sunday. After making an incredible run to the championship round of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Tournament, including three straight victories on Saturday, the Jaspers' quest for a title came up one game short. Third-seeded Iona (24-22) scored three runs in the first and five more in the third to notch an 8-0 victory over sixth-seeded Manhattan (26-29) at Alumni Softball Field to clinch the MAAC championship and a berth in the NCAA Tournament.
Danielle Gabriel (Island Heights, N.J.) pitched the Jaspers into a decisive game with a brilliant two-hit shutout in a 1-0 victory in the opening game of the championship round on Saturday. She got the start again on Sunday, but ran into trouble in the first. After Iona put two runners on base with one out, Gabriel got MAAC Rookie of the Year Kristen Turner on a fly ball to left. However, Sarah Schutz then ripped a shot to left that hit the top of the wall for a two-run double. Katie Jansson was up next, and she doubled to right, giving the Gaels a 3-0 lead.
That was all the offense Tournament MVP Carly Argyle would need. The Jaspers put two runners on in the first when Amanda Paxson (Cedar Grove, N.J.) doubled and Jenn Vazquez (Fairfield, Conn.) walked, but Vazquez was called out for interference on Andi Stallard's (Katy, Texas) grounder to second, ending the inning. Manhattan put two runners on base again in the third, as Elena Bowman (San Mateo, Calif.) drew a walk and Paxson was hit by a pitch. However, Argyle got out of trouble when Vazquez grounded back to the circle.
Amy Bright (Manlius, N.Y.), who relieved Gabriel after the second double in the first, held the Gaels at bay until the fifth. After pinch hitter Ashlyn Morris led off with a walk and Turner singled, Schutz crushed a long home run to left that increased Iona's lead to 6-0. Jansson followed with a single, bringing up Brianna Schauer. Schauer connected for a two-run blast to left, putting the Gaels up 8-0 and ending the contest.
Paxson's first-inning double was Manhattan's only hit off Argyle. Playing in her final game as a Jasper, Kate Bowen (Newtown, Conn.) finished 0-for-2 with a walk. Bowen ends her career as Manhattan's all-time leader in games played, and she's second all-time in hits. Gabriel (4-6) lasted 0.2 innings in the circle. She was charged with three runs on three hits while also walking one and striking out one. Bright went 3.2 innings, giving up five runs on seven hits with two strikeouts and a walk.
Bowman and Vazquez were both named to the All-Tournament Team for their efforts in the Jaspers' six games. Bowman hit .400 in the tournament and smacked a solo homer to account for the only run in the first game of the championship round on Saturday. Vazquez, meanwhile, collected six RBIs and drove in the winning, go-ahead or tying run in each of Manhattan's first four tournament contests.
For Iona, Schutz finished a triple short of the cycle. She went 3-for-3 with a homer, a double, two runs scored and five RBIs. Schauer's two-run homer was her only hit, while Jansson ended up 2-for-3 with a run scored and an RBI. After being held to two hits in the first game of the championship round, the Gaels collected 10 on Sunday. In addition to going 1-for-2 at the plate, Argyle (15-8) tossed a one-hit shutout. She struck out three and walked three in five innings.
Manhattan played in the final game of the MAAC Tournament for the third time in program history and the first time since 1999. The Jaspers, who were aiming to become the first team to win the MAAC title after losing their first game since Iona in 2011, also tied a MAAC Tournament record by winning four games in the event.
