AVE MARIA, Fla.- The Ave Maria University softball team gained a much-needed split on Wednesday afternoon, taking the second game of a doubleheader from the Fire of Southeastern University at the AMU Softball Field. The Gyrenes bounced back from an 3-0 defeat in the opener to claim an 8-0 five inning win in the nightcap.
Pitching was the main story in the opener, as the two starters combined to give up just one earned runs over 14 innings of work. Ave Maria's Sarah Shepard scattered just five hits over her seven innings, allowing only one earned run. Southeastern's Autumn Hunter earned the win in the circle, tossing seven shutout innings with seven strikeouts and four hits allowed.
Southeastern got on the board with two runs in the top of the third, taking a lead they would not relinquish. The Fire put runners on second and third with one out, as Ramsey Sullivan singled and Britt Robinson reached on an error. With two outs, Erica Stahl singled to center field, scoring both runners before she was thrown out at second base.
One insurance run crossed the plate in the top of the seventh. A walk, a sacrifice bunt, and a single from Sullivan gave the Fire runners on the corners with one out. After pinch runner Jaz Szierer stole second, a sacrifice fly from Hannah Federico drove in Kaley Sarasty, giving the Fire their final run of the day.
Ave Maria managed four hits in the opener, led by a 2-for-3 effort from Abby Love. Kayla Martinez added a double, and Ashley Nelson worked an eleven-pitch at bat to pick up Ave Maria's first hit of the day, a single.
In game two, Ave Maria bounced back from the game one loss with five runs in the bottom of the first. The Gyrenes loaded the bases on two walks and a hit by pitch to the first three hitters of the game. After the walk to leadoff hitter Kalie Romig, the senior stole her 162nd career base to become The Sun Conference's all-time stolen base leader.
With the bases loaded, Nelson drew a walk to put AMU on the board. After a pitching switch from SEU, Kayla Martinez cleared the bases with a double over the head of the left fielder. Martinez's three-run double was followed by another RBI double from Marisa Michi, accounting for her team-best 29th RBI of the season, to give the Gyrenes a five-run lead.
The Gyrenes added to their lead with some smart baserunning in the bottom of the second. With two outs, Angela Cataldo singled up the middle, then proceeded to steal second. A single from Nelson put runners on the corners, and when Nelson was caught in a rundown, she forced an error from the Fire that scored Cataldo from third.
After a scoreless third inning, Ave Maria added another run in the bottom of the fourth. Romig reached base for the second time with a single, then moved around to third on a Southeastern error. Love then drove in her fellow senior with a perfectly placed bunt, increasing Ave Maria's lead to 7-0.
AMU's final run came across in the bottom of the fifth, ending the game early due to the NAIA run rule. With two outs, the Gyrenes loaded the bases on walks to Brooke Angerer and Katelynn Sebastiani, as well as an error off the bat of Romig. On the first pitch to Love with the bases loaded, AMU's all-time leader in hit by pitches was plunked for the second time, scoring Angerer from third to end the contest.
Alissa Bolinger had a stellar outing in the circle, pitching five scoreless innings with four strikeouts and no walks. At the plate, Nelson and Romig reached base three times in the victory, while Cataldo was on base twice.
With some momentum after the game two win, the Gyrenes return to the field on Friday for a doubleheader against the Keiser University Seahawks. The doubleheader is scheduled for a 2 p.m. start in West Palm Beach.
