Lancers Battle Delays to Come Away 1-1 in Florida on Day Three of Action

Worcester, MA- Worcester State Softball (1-3, 0-0) returned to action on a cloudy Monday morning, under the threat of potential showers, to take on the Ramapo Roadrunners (4-2, 0-0) and the the Wooster College Fighting Scots (6-6 0-0) in their third day of action in Florida.

Final- Game 1

Worcester State: 1

Ramapo: 2

Final- Game 2 (5- Innings)

Worcester State: 15

Wooster College: 7

In what was sure to be a hotly contested battle to open the action, the Lancers were first to bat against the Roadrunners and stuck to their status quo of scoring early. A sophomore Bella Gasbarro (Leominster, MA) single up the middle would send junior Emma Lanpher (Charlton, MA) home, after earlier getting on base after a dropped third strike to get the game started. Senior Emily Bartlett (Lowell, MA) would get the nod to start today's action, striking out swinging two of her first three batters, while junior Katie Rygiel (Hillsborough, NJ) would start the action with a single to center. A double by senior Avery Bartolomeo (Mount Laurel, NJ) would have the Roadrunners tie the action up in the bottom of the inning, but Bartlett maintained control of the action and guided the Lancers out of danger with just the single run scored. 

The second and third innings saw crisp defensive play from both sides, but a homer by Ramapo's Alexis Corra (Mahwah, NJ) on a full count would grab the lead for the Roadrunners in the third. The fourth inning would see a return to defensive form before an action packed fifth inning saw Lancers Lanpher and sophomore Jayden Kelly (Tynsgboro, MA) on second and third with two outs before a lightning delay put a pause on the action. In the return to action the delay had put a bit of a damper on the Lancer's sophomore Morgan Keefe's (Dracut, MA) heat as she flew out to center field to end the threat but Bartlett would remain in the zone, taking down Ramapo in four batters in the bottom of the fifth.

The sixth inning would see more solid play from each team as the Roadrunners worked Worcester off the plate in four and the Lancers responded by removing Ramapo in five batters. The crucial seventh came for Worcester where a run was needed to keep their hopes of victory alive. With an early error getting sophomore Bailey Tammaro (Fitchburg, MA) on base early but the solid pitching of the roadrunners would see Worcester unable to get the needed run and taking home the 2-1 loss in a hard fought battle. 

Bartlett would go the full six innings for Worcester in the loss, recording 5 strikeouts in the outing.

The second game would have an abundance of action as Worcester State leaped out to a hot start and with the battle of further weather delays forcing a stop-and-go game, Worcester showed their endurance to push through.

First year Peyton Maloney (West Boylston, MA) would get the game two nod in what has been dubbed the battle of Worcester/Wooster. Maloney would make quick work of the first batters, taking them down in order without allowing a single hit, but Wooster's Lynnsey Delio (Goshen, IN) would not fare as well as Lanpher would open the game up with a single to the shortstop. Keefe would reignite in game two, singling to centerfield before junior Abigail Koziol (Lunenburg, MA) would lay down a perfect bunt that would move Keefe to second and claim Koziol possession of first base. Gasbarro would then come to the plate and double down the left field line to bring two runs home, which sophomore Emma Lapoint (Westfield, MA) then matched with a single to center field to put Worcester up 4-0 early.

The second inning was more of the same for Maloney as she took three outs from the Fighting Scots on just four at bats. In a near mirror copy of the first inning Lanpher would again be first up, drilling a single to right field and then ws advanced to second off a first year Cali Brouillard (Millbury, MA) liner that towards the pitcher. Koziol would again make contact, this time to right field to load the bases for Worcester. Gasbarro would make quick work in the hunt for another run as she singled to left field, grabbing an additional run for Worcester and forcing an early pitching change for Wooster as senior Lilly McLendon (Dallas, TX) stepped into the fray. Senior Lauren Dube (Leominster, MA) managed to force McLendon into a walk that would bring Brouillard in, while Lapoint took a hit from a pitch bringing Koziol across the plate. Sophomore Camden Heenan (Webster, MA) would land on first off a fielder's choice that while tagging out Lapoint, saw Gasbarro across home. Tammaro would then single past the third base line and return Dube to the dugout. In Lanpher's second at bat of the inning she would again single, this time to the shortstop to reload the bases. Brouillard would then single up the middle and bring two additional runs across before McLendon to work her way out of the inning. The damage had already been done though as Worcester now was up 11-0.

The third inning would finally see the Fighting Scots finding some success as Stephanie Griffin-Sanchez's (Grafton, OH) single up the left side would score their first run of the game. Maloney would then grab an out from sophomore Katie Mommers's (Rock River, OH) grounder to short, that sent in run number two before an error in the field sent Griffin-Sanchez home for Wooster's third run. Worcester responded with runs of their own in the bottom of the inning after recording two early outs, Heenan would single to the right bringing Gasbarro home immediately followed up by a Tammaro single to send home Lapoint and Heenan. A lightning delay would put a still in the action as each team waited out their return to the field and the close of the inning. 

After the break in play, first year Taylor Coonan (Grafton, MA) would step in for Maloney to close out the game where she quickly grabbed the opening out of the inning. Worcester's sticking point would continue to be Griffin-Sanchez, as she singled up the middle to send in another run for the Fighting Scots. A throwing error would see Wooster's fifth and sixth run cross the plate before Mommers would double down the left field line for a ground rule double and the seventh run recorded. Coonan would settle the field and stop Wooster at four runs to take a 14-7 lead into the bottom of the fourth.

Worcester would look to end the game in five innings for the second time in two days as they headed into the bottom of the inning where first game phenom pitcher Bartlett would grab the needed run with a single to right field that would result in a run down for Keefe at third for the out, but in the intervening action sophomore Carisa Andrews (Medford, MA) has already booked it home for the Lancer's 15th run of the game before Wooster could work Worcester off the bags. After a quick double by the Fighting Scots to get the action started in the fifth, Coonan would force the needed three outs out of the remaining four at bats to secure Worcester's second win of the season.

Lanpher would lead the game with three hits and two runs, while Gasbarro, Lapoint and Tammaro would all record three RBIs. Maloney would grab the win for Worcester, allowing just three runs, with two earned and two strikeouts in three innings of action. 

What is Next:

Worcester (2-4, 0-0) moves into an off day on Tuesday before taking on Luther at 9am on Wednesday March 20th before a matchup with Southern Virginia at 11:15am.