Lady Cardinals swept, still in position for postseason

April 24, 2006 —

The SVSU softball team lost its fifth and sixth consecutive games on Saturday, dropping a pair of close games at Gannon.

The Lady Cardinals had their Sunday doubleheader against Mercyhurst cancelled due to rain. A series was rescheduled for next Sunday at 1 p.m.

Gannon's pitching kept SVSU at bay on Saturday, allowing two runs in a 3-2 victory in Game 1 and shutting out the Lady Cardinals, 3-0, in Game 2.

Freshman Stacy Kraatz kept SVSU close in Game 1, pitching six innings and giving up two earned runs. She struck out seven and walked just one, but gave up eight hits. Kraatz' unearned run was the key, as Gannon junior Jenn Kulick gave up eight hits and two earned runs herself.

After senior Tabitha Greenwood homered to tie the game at 1 in the top of the second, Gannon took advantage of a throwing error by freshman shortstop Nicole Fick. After Gannon senior Charity Sharp bunted for a single and was sacrificed over by freshman Holli Michaels, sophomore Jaclyn Corroto hit it to Fick, who could not get Corroto out at first. Sharp scored on the error, putting Gannon up for good, 2-1.

Down 3-1 after a RBI single by Corroto, Greenwood collected her third hit of the game, singling up the middle in the top of the sixth. Sophomore Emma Persons pinch ran, and Fick hit a two-out triple to plate her. Junior Sara Seronko struck out to end the rally.

Greenwood was 3-for-3 to lead SVSU, while Fick was 2-for-3 with the RBI.

Three of Gannon's first four hitters went 3-for-4, with the leadoff hitter Corroto and senior Joanna Fergus collecting an RBI each.

Coach Sabrina Lane said the game came down to SVSU's miscues.

"We had poor baserunning," she said. "Without (that unearned run in the second inning), we should have beat them 2-1 instead of losing 3-2. Every mistake we made, they capitalized."

SVSU's hitters were less effective in Game 2, as sophomore Lauren Soldner threw a two-hit, seven-strikeout gem to shut out the Lady Cardinals. Senior Karen Ray did her part to keep SVSU close, giving up one run until Corroto hit a two-run home run in the top of the seventh.

Lady Cardinals' leadoff hitter Monica Sims was the only one to get a hit of Soldner, as she went 2-for-3. Fick was the only other player to reach base, a fielder's choice that got Sims thrown out at third in the first inning.

"We weren't adjusting well," Lane said. "It was a poor offensive effort."

Corroto again led the way for Gannon, as she went 2-for-3 with all three RBI. With runners at second and third in the top of the fifth, she singled to plate Sharp. The game would stay 1-0 until Corroto's home run scored Michaels.

Lane said she was not expecting to get swept.

"I was expecting hits, and we didn't get those," she said. "The girls didn't come to play."

The two losses drop SVSU's record to 16-26, 6-10 in the GLIAC. Gannon improved to 9-5 in the conference and 30-13 overall.

The Lady Cardinals finish their season with three home dates plus the doubleheader at Mercyhurst. They begin Thursday with Aquinas College. Winless Lake Superior State comes to SVSU on Friday at 3 p.m., followed by Madonna University on May 2.

The doubleheader against Aquinas should help prepare the team for the key doubleheader against Mercyhurst, Lane said.

"Those games will give us a chance to get our bats out and get some hits," she said.

The Lady Cardinals find themselves in eighth place in the GLIAC, still in position to make it to the conference tournament. However, Mercyhurst is two behind SVSU in the win column, so the series will most likely determine the last seed. Lane said that after talking to the Lakers' coach, she sees a similarity between the two teams.

"Mercyhurst is just struggling," Lane said. "They aren't playing up to their ability, a lot like us. But they're going to come to play."

Before the doubleheader, Mercyhurst hosts Findlay, 4-12 in the conference, on Friday and Ashland, 10-4 in league play, on Saturday. If SVSU wins its two contests from Lake State, which is mathematically eliminated from the tournament, Mercyhurst would most likely need to beat SVSU twice to advance. But Lane said she isn't taking Lake State for granted, saying, "They could take it to us, too."

Regardless, Lane is confident that her team will make it to the tournament.

"We know we can win (against Mercyhurst)," she said. "But we shouldn't be in this position."