Swantek Swats Three Homers as Softball Sweeps Molloy; 9-6, 10-6
Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 ROCKVILLE CENTRE, N.Y. (Apr. 21, 2014) - The offense exploded for six home runs Monday, as the 18th-ranked LIU Post softball team swept East Coast Conference rival Molloy at Bob Klein Field in Rockville Centre, N.Y. The Pioneers won by the scores of 9-6 and 10-6.
The home squad jumped ahead early in the opener as two unearned runs crossed the plate on a single by Dayna White in the first. But, with the bags full in the third, senior shortstop
Nicole Hagenah (Commack, N.Y.) cleared the basepaths with a double to left-center to give LIU Post a 3-2 edge. Junior catcher
Aly Dzierzynski (Deer Park, N.Y.) followed with her league-leading 16th homer to extend the lead to 5-2.
After the Lions (21-18, 13-7 ECC) came within one in the bottom half of the third, freshman first baseman
Kayla McCoy (Smithtown, N.Y.) sent a solo shot over the fence in left in the fourth.
The Pioneers (35-5, 21-1 ECC) would add another three in the sixth, highlighted by a one-out solo blast from sophomore designated player
Paige Swantek (Smithtown, N.Y.), her first of three on the day.
Freshman
Ashley Martin (Long Beach, N.Y.) improved to 14-0 in the circle, going 5.1 innings and allowing four runs (one earned) on six hits while fanning two.
Junior outfielder
Catherine Havens (Eastport, N.Y.) was the lone Pioneer to register multiple hits as she went 2-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored.
In Game Two, LIU Post opened with a four-run first and followed with a five-run third inning. Hagenah once again registered the first RBI as she doubled to right-center to knock home Havens. Dzierzynski added an RBI base knock, and Swantek swatted her second roundtripper of the afternoon to cap off the scoring in the inning.
Molloy answered right back as White sent a three-run shot to center to cut the deficit to one.
Following a McCoy RBI single in the third, Havens joined the home run party in a huge way, blasting a grand slam to right-center for her first career big fly.
The Lions added a run in each of the third, fourth, and fifth innings to bring the score to 9-6 in favor of LIU Post, but Swantek once again homered in the final frame as the Pioneers took the game, 10-6.
Tossing the first four innings, junior
Megan Salcido (Brawley, Calif.) earned the win (4-1) as she surrendered five runs on six hits and three walks while striking out one.
Havens, Swantek, and sophomore third baseman
Maria Palmeri (Middle Village, N.Y.) each recorded three hits in the contest, while junior outfielder
Samantha Miller (East Meadow, N.Y.) added two. Havens collected four RBIs, and Swantek chipped in with three of her own.
The Pioneers are back in action on Tuesday (Apr. 22), as they host Queens for a conference doubleheader at the LIU Post Softball Complex in Brookville, N.Y. First pitch is set for 3 p.m.