The Fairfield University softball team traveled to Poughkeepsie, New York, on April 20 where they faced a Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference foe, the Marist Red Foxes, in a highly anticipated doubleheader.
In the first contest, the Stags’ bats came out very slow, failing to create any form of momentum or pressure on the Marist defense. The Foxes on the other hand were just the opposite, as they came out aggressive and took an early 2-0 lead in the first inning.
The score would remain at 2-0 until the fourth inning, where the Stags finally broke down the door of the tough Marist pitching and started a rally of their own.
Graduate student Lauryn Rhinehart and Megan Forbes ‘23 both reached first base with singles, which ultimately culminated into a Fairfield run due to an error in the Marist infield, putting the score of the game to 2-1 in favor of the Red Foxes.
Marist would immediately take back their two-run lead in the following inning, after a Red Fox scored on a sacrifice fly ball to right field. With a score of 3-1 and time slowly running out for the Stags, Fairfield only had 6 outs to strike a comeback, which is exactly what they did.
After a 6th inning fly ball to center field from Kasey Sekula ‘24 that scored Kaitlin Hoffman ‘22, the Stags only trailed by a run heading into the final inning of the game 3-2.
Fairfield continued with their momentum from the previous inning and instantly loaded the bases with only one out in the top of the seventh inning. This was set up perfectly for Forbes, who hit a two-run double that would bring home two runs and take the lead for the Stags 4-3.
Fairfield was not done there, as Sekula would bring home Hoffman on a sacrifice fly ball to center, expanding their lead to now two. Katie Kudlacik ‘22 would be awarded the victory, as she tossed a gem of a game, pitching seven innings on two earned runs and two strikeouts.
In the big comeback win for the Stags, it was a perfect start for a doubleheader series and a win that brought an enormous amount of confidence in the clubhouse.
On Thursday, April 21, the Stags took on the University of Hartford, which was the first installment of a six-game home stand. Pitcher Sam Lindsay ‘23 picked up her second win of the season against Hartford, who the Stags were able to shut out by a final score of 9-0 according to the official box score.
Two days later, on Saturday, April 23, the Stags hosted a doubleheader against Canisius College. In the first contest, a three-run homerun from Hoffman created a dramatic finish, as the team was able to take home the 4-3 walkoff win. The second game did not go as smoothly as the first, with the Golden Griffins walking away with a 4-1 victory.
Similarly, the Stags welcomed Niagara University to Alumni Softball Field for another double header on Sunday, April 24. Senior pitcher Kudlacik only allowed two hits in the first game of the two, and shut out the Purple Eagles by a score of 4-0 to seal the Stags’ victory.
Following the same trends as their other come-from-behind wins against Marist and Canisius, the Stags were able to topple the 3-0 lead that the Purple Eagles held in the fifth inning of the second game to turn it into a 4-3 victory. Their four runs in the bottom of the fifth inning pushed them past the Griffins in scoring, while their defense in the field confirmed the win.
The Stags will travel to West Point, N.Y. to take on the United States Military Academy on Wednesday, April 27 at 6 p.m.
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