MIAMI GARDENS, Fla.- The Ave Maria University softball team fell twice to conference rival St. Thomas on Wednesday evening, dropping 11-3 and 6-1 decisions to the Bobcats in Miami Gardens. The doubleheader marked Ave Maria's first conference twinbill away from the confines of the AMU Softball Field.
Two big innings sunk the Gyrenes in the first game of the doubleheader, as the Bobcats used a six-run fourth inning and a four-run sixth to claim an 11-3 victory. The first run for St. Thomas came in the bottom of the third inning, when Alliyah Sands reached on a hit by pitch, stole second base, and scored on an RBI single from Rebeka Ehrenthal.
The Gyrenes tied the game in the top of the fourth inning with their first run of the game. Abby Love started the inning by reaching on an error, and moved to second base on a fielder's choice. After the next two batters were retired, Emma Thompson drove in Love with a single through the right side for the second of her two hits on the day.
St. Thomas' first big inning started with a double from Tyenna Colon, who was then driven in on a single by Jordan Kruempel. The final five runs of the inning all scored with two outs, and were provided on an RBI single from Ehrenthal, a bases-clearing triple from Emily Santos, and an RBI single from Alexis Castroman.
Down 7-1, the Gyrenes battled back with two runs in the top of the fifth, cutting the STU lead to 7-3. Kalie Romig, who went 2-for-3 with a pair of stolen bases, led off the inning with a single, and promptly stole second. A pair of groundouts from Angela Cataldo and Michella Davis allowed Romig to score. Ave scored with two outs, as Love doubled and then scored on a Genevieve Twigg single.
Four runs in the sixth inning from the Bobcats ended the game early due to the run rule. St. Thomas' runs were produced on a pair of AMU errors and two bases loaded walks.
In the second game, St. Thomas again jumped out to a big lead with four runs in the bottom of the first. The Bobcats started the scoring with a single from GiGi Santos that turned into a run on an AMU throwing error. None of the four runs in the inning were plated on a hit, with the other three coming on an error, a fielder's choice, and a wild pitch.
STU's scored two more runs in the nightcap, scoring one each in the fourth and sixth innings. An RBI groundout with the bases loaded from Santos plated the run in the fourth inning, while an RBI single from Sands concluded the scoring in the sixth.
The Gyrenes got a run back in the top of the fifth. With two outs, Angela Cataldo singled for one her four hits on the night. Cataldo moved around the bases on an RBI single from Michella Davis, cutting the Bobcat lead to 5-1.
Ave Maria's next games in Sun Conference action come on Saturday, when the Gyrenes travel to Babson Park for a doubleheader against Webber International University. First pitch against the Warriors is scheduled for 1:00 p.m.
