Gators Split in Florida

Mar 20, 2007

Endicott Box | Carleton Box

KISSIMMEE, Fla. – The Allegheny College Gators split a pair of games today (Tuesday, March 20), falling 6-1 to Endicott before defeating Carleton 7-3 in the afternoon finale. Four Gators had three hits on the day, as the Blue and Gold batted .304 over the 14 innings.

Endicott reached the scoreboard in the first at-bat of the game, when the leadoff hitter singled, stole second and then scored on a throwing error by Allegheny shortstop Rachel Ryan (West Salem, Ohio/Northwestern). The Eagles added another unearned run in the top of the third inning, when the leadoff hitter once again reached on a base hit. On the ensuing sacrifice bunt, the throw from first baseman Allison Burr (Farmdale, Ohio/Badger) to second baseman Abby Bodenlos (Pittsburgh, Pa./Shady Side Academy) hit the runner, and deflected into right field, scoring the runner on first and giving Endicott a 2-0 advantage.

The visitors on the scoreboard increased their lead to five after a three-run fifth inning, as the Eagles scored their trio of runs on two hits, a walk and an error. After allowing a wild pitch to score a runner from third, pushing Endicott’s lead to 6-0, the Gators fought back in the bottom of the sixth inning, as Ryan’s third triple in the past two games scored Liz Burr (Farmdale, Ohio/Badger), cutting the deficit to 6-1. Ryan would be stranded on third, however, and a comeback in the bottom of the seventh ended with a pair of groundouts to the third baseman.

Burr led the team by going 2-for-4 from the plate, with the other five hits coming from five other batters. Bodenlos had the team’s only steal, giving her 30 consecutive steals without being caught, dating to last season, but was then thrown out at home on a failed squeeze play bunt after a lengthy rundown, ending her streak, which was tied for the 18th longest streak in NCAA Division III history.

Alicia Morley (Sinclairville, N.Y./Cassadaga Valley) picked up the loss for the Gators, pitching the entire seven innings, striking out five and walking five, while allowing no earned runs in the contest.

The Gators got off to a quick start against Carleton, scoring three runs in the top of the first inning, the first run scoring when Ryan singled up the middle, scoring Katie Wills (McKees Rocks, Pa./Montour). Becca Burns (Rogersville, Pa./West Greene) followed with a single that scored Bodenlos, as Ryan followed across the plate after an error by the left fielder, giving the Gators a 3-0 lead.

Carleton cut into the deficit with a run in the bottom of the third inning, before the Gators answered with three more runs in the top of the fifth inning, when Ryan singled in Wills, before Emmalynn Sigrist (Amherst, N.Y./Williamsville North) singled with the bases loaded, scoring Burns and Ryan, pushing the Allegheny advantage to 6-1. Carleton started a comeback in the sixth inning, scoring a pair of runs to cut the deficit to 6-3, but with the bases loaded, pitcher Allison Korotkin (Birmingham, Mich./Detroit Country Day) forced a groundout to first base, ending the threat.

The Blue and Gold added another run in the top of the seventh inning when Stephanie Laskinski (Gibsonia, Pa./Pine Richland) singled and scored on a fielders choice off the bat of Burr, giving the game its 7-3 final score. Ryan and Burns were each 2-for-3 from the plate while Sigrist connected for two hits in her four at-bats. Wills and Ryan scored twice, with Ryan and Sigrist each driving in a pair of runs. Korotkin, in her first collegiate start, pitched the entire seven innings, giving up seven hits while striking out four in the first win of her young career.

The Gators, now 3-9 on the season take a day off before facing off against Bridgewater State and Baptist Bible on Thursday, March 22.

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