Gross Records Two RBI as Softball Travels to Bridgeport
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Box Score 2 BRIDGEPORT, Conn. (Apr. 12, 2015) – Despite a two-RBI day from sophomore Julie Gross (Port Monmouth, N.J./Middletown North), the Mercy College softball team dropped both ends of an ECC doubleheader to the University of Bridgeport on Sunday afternoon at Seaside Park, suffering a 5-3 loss in the opener before losing 6-1 in the nightcap.
The Mavericks (6-26, 5-10 ECC) fail to split an ECC matchup for the first time since getting swept by Queens on March 29th, while the Purple Knights (9-21, 5-11 ECC) move to within a half game of Mercy in the conference standings with the sweep.
Game 1: Bridgeport 5, Mercy 3
The first three innings of game one saw neither team be able to get a run across. However, that would change in the top of the fourth as the Mavericks got on the board with a two-run single off the bat of Gross to take a 2-0 lead.
After sophomore starter Holly Pundick (Whiterock, B.C./Jefferson College) pitched a scoreless bottom of the fourth, Mercy would add on to its lead with an unearned run off an error by the center field to score sophomore Janelle Wade (West Chester, Pa./Henderson) and make it 3-0.
Bridgeport would not go down quietly as they led off their half of the fifth with a double to left field before pinch hitter Tara Faford smacked a homer to left field to make the score 3-2.
The next batter hit a double to center field leading to a pitching change with freshman Taylor Holmes (Ashford, Conn./E.O Smith) coming in relief of Pundick. The change had little effect as the first batter Holmes faced sent one over the left field fence to make it 4-3 with only one out in the inning.
The Purple Knights added one more run in the inning off a double to center to make it 5-3 after five innings of play.
Mercy would get runners in scoring position in both the sixth and seventh innings but could not capitalize thus sending the Purple Knights to the game one win.
Gross went 2-for-3 with the two RBI, while senior Jackie Couillard (Wolcott, Conn./Wolcott) finished 2-for-4. Wade concluded the opener 1-for-2 with a run scored and senior Michelle Duford (Maple Ridge, B.C./Seward County CC) batted 1-for-3 with a run scored. Holmes went 2/3 of an inning with one earned run allowed on three hits to take the loss.
Game 2: Bridgeport 6, Mercy 1
After recording nine hits in the opener, the Mavericks could not get the bats going in the nightcap as they ended up with four hits.
Bridgeport jumped out to an early 2-0 lead after one following a Meghan O'Leary two-run homer to right center off Mercy starter Anna Cochis (Clifton Park, N.Y./Catholic Central).
The Mavericks threatened in the top of the third with the bases loaded on four occasions but were unable to produce a run as two runners were thrown out at home and a fly out to center would end the threat.
The contest remained 2-0 until the bottom of the fifth when the Purple Knights tacked on a run on a Jessica Griesinger RBI groundout to make it 3-0 after five.
Mercy got on the board in the sixth on a pinch-hit double from freshman Chelsea Schott (Meriden, Conn./Francis T. Maloney) that scored Couillard to make it 3-1.
Bridgeport responded in their half of the sixth with three runs on four hits to build the lead to 6-1 which would prove too much for the Mavericks to overcome in the seventh.
Couillard capped off the day by going 1-for-3 with a run scored in the second game and Gross and junior Alyssa Gutierrez (Tucson, Ariz./Salpointe Catholic) also recorded base knocks. Cochis allowed two unearned runs in four innings on only four hits to earn the loss.
Head Coach Mike Fazio and the Mavericks return to action on Tuesday, April 14th with a home doubleheader against Queens at 2:30 pm.
