SOFTBALL LOSES TO SOUTHERN CONNECTICUT ON OPENING DAY; 11-9, 6-1

Box Score vs. Southern Connecticut (Game One) - March 10, 2012

Box Score vs. Southern Connecticut (Game Two) - March 10, 2012

CLERMONT, Fla. (Mar. 10, 2012) - On Opening Day of the 2012 season, the Molloy College softball team fell in two hard-fought contests against Southern Connecticut State University in a non-conference battle at the National Training Center on Saturday in Clermont, Fla. The Owls claimed the first game, 11-9, before taking the second, 6-1.

Game One - Southern Connecticut 11, Molloy 9

The first game was an offensive battle. With junior Megan Butterworth (Bellmore, N.Y.) in the circle for the Lions, Southern Connecticut jumped out to a quick 6-0 lead in the first inning. Molloy answered back in the third inning with a two-run homer by sophomore Nicolette Sinagra (Brooklyn, N.Y.) that also scored junior Haley Calderwood (Lake Elsinore, Calif.), bringing the score to 6-2.

The Lions again added two runs in the fourth. Sophomore Lauren Alexander (Huntington, N.Y.) singled to shortstop to get on base, and a connection from Calderwood forced an error by the Owls’ third baseman, resulting in a run from Alexander. Sinagra recorded another RBI off a single up the middle, sending freshman Brianne Catalano (Franklin Square, N.Y.) across home plate, cutting the deficit to 6-4. Southern Connecticut brought in two more runs in the bottom of the fourth to extend its lead.

The fifth inning was quiet, until the Molloy bats came alive with a five-run sixth inning. Alexander earned an RBI after being hit by a pitch, which sent Sinagra across the plate. Catalano followed up with two RBI on a single to left field, plating Butterworth and freshman Brenda Lee (Corona, Calif.). Catalano then scored after a fielding error by the Owls’ shortstop, giving the Lions a 9-8 advantage.

Southern Connecticut closed it out with three more runs in the bottom of the sixth, before blanking Molloy in the top of the seventh to walk away with an 11-9 victory in Game One.

Game Two - Southern Connecticut 6, Molloy 1

Junior right-hander Kelley Jansen (Long Beach, N.Y.) took to the circle for the Lions in Game Two. The Owls again jumped out to a quick lead, scoring four runs in the top of the first. She then held the Owls scoreless until the fifth inning. Molloy started to chip away in its half of the second inning, by way of a homer from Lee, the first of her collegiate career.

Southern Connecticut tacked on two more runs in the top of the fifth, for a 6-1 lead. That would prove to be the end of scoring for the day, as Jansen and the Lions held the Owls scoreless for the remainder of the game.

Head Coach Susan Cassidy-Lyke and the Lions resume play on Day Two of their Florida trip at the National Training Center in Clermont, Fla. Due to a schedule change, the Lions will face Millersville at 11 a.m., before taking on Alderson-Broaddus in their second bout of the day.