Box Score March 25, 2012
Final Stats
Mt. Vernon, Va. -
Fordham softball closed out the weekend by sweeping George Washington 2-1 and 5-1, in a pair of games on Sunday, March 25, from Mt. Vernon, Virginia. The Rams improved to 16-14 overall, 4-0 in conference play and have won nine straight games.
Game 1:
The opening game pitted a pair of aces against each other as Jen Mineau faced the Colonials' Courtney Martin. The pitchers were the story early as neither team had a hit until the third inning. In a rare case, Mineau recorded four strikeouts in the second inning as Victoria Valos struck out and reached first on a wild pitch.
In the third, Fordham broke through on the scoreboard as Gabby Luety connected on a solo home run to left field to give the Rams a 1-0 lead. From there, Lindsey Kay Bright singled and reached second base on an error. She came around to score when Nicole Callahan lifted a fly ball that was misplayed by Autumn Taylor in centerfield for an error. Fordham led 2-0 after two and a half innings.
Mineau was overpowering the rest of the way, as she allowed a lone hiccup, a solo home run to left by Valos to lead off the fifth. The RBI homer was the only hit allowed by Mineau as she went the distance for the win. She struck out 13 and walked no one. Bright had a pair of hits to lead Fordham.
Game 2:
Jen Mineau took the ball for the rubber match as well and fared just as well in her complete game victory. She got help in the top of the first as the Rams loaded the bases when Nicole Callahan reached on an error, Paige Ortiz singled and Brianna Turgeon lifted a base hit to left. Michele Daubman hit into a fielder's choice to keep the sacks full, and Elise Fortier gave Fordham a 3-0 lead with a bases-clearing double to left-center.
Lauren Wilson singled to left to lead off the bottom of the first. She advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt and moved to third on a base hit from Autumn Taylor. After a Chelsea Lenhart pop-up, Taylor stole second and Valos walked to load the bases for the Colonials. From there, Mineau escaped trouble by getting Julie Orlandi on strikes.
Both teams went in order in the second and Fordham extended its lead in the third when a pair of singles from Brianna Turgeon and Paige Ortiz put two runners on. Michele Daubman hit into a fielder's choice that eliminated Ortiz, and Fordham had a pair on base for Fortier. Fortier made the score 5-0 when she cleared the bases with another double, this one to center. The two-RBI extra base hit gave her a career-high five RBI in the game.
Mineau retired George Washington in order in the third and fourth innings before Tara Fogarty led off the fifth with a solo shot to left to make it 5-1, Fordham. Mineau gave up harmless singles in the sixth and seventh, but no runners scored.
With the sweep, Mineau upped her record to 13-8, while the Rams are 4-0 to open A-10 play during a nine-game winning streak. The team steps out of the A-10 to face Lehigh in a doubleheader on Wednesday, March 28, from Easton, Pennsylvania. The first pitch is scheduled for 3:00 PM.
