TAMPA, Fla. -- A six-run second inning catapulted the Fordham softball team to a five-inning 11-1 victory Saturday over Florida Gulf Coast in South Florida's Presidents' Day Weekend Tournament at the USF Softball Stadium. With the win, the Rams improve to 4-4 on the season, while the Eagles fall to 4-5 overall.
Fordham spotted FGCU a run in the top of the first, but quickly answered back in the bottom half when senior
Kayla Lombardo singled home sophomore
Sydney Canessa with two outs to knot the game at 1-1.
In the bottom of the second, the Rams used five hits and took advantage of two errors to take a commanding 6-1 lead. Senior
Rachel Gillen and junior
Allie Bradian singled to start the inning. Senior
Cora Ianiro followed and reached on a throwing error by the third baseman, which allowed Gillen to break the tie and place runners on second and third.
Canessa then came to the plate and delivered a two-run double to left field plating Bradian and Ianiro for a 4-1 lead. Sophomore
Amy Van Hoven kept the rally going with a single, before senior
Michele Daubman lined out to second base for the first out. After a wild pitch advanced the runners to second and third, Mayer reached on a fielder's choice. On the play, Canessa scored, and Van Hoven came around on a fielding error by the catcher to make it 6-1.
With two outs in the inning, senior
Brianna Turgeon capped the scoring with a RBI single to right field, as Lomardo scored for a 7-1 advantage.
Fordham put the contest away in the bottom of the fourth with four more runs to stretch the lead out to 11-1. Mayer singled home Van Hoven, who doubled to lead off the inning, and advanced Daubman to third, who walked. Daubman then scored on Lombardo's RBI sacrifice fly to right field, before Turgeon delivered the big blow with a two-run bomb over the right-center field fence. The home run was Turgeon's second of the season.
Daubman clinched the mercy-rule victory by retiring the Eagles in order in the top of the fifth. Daubman (1-2) earned her first victory of the season, scattering five hits and allowed just the one earned run while walking one and striking out one in the complete-game effort.
Van Hoven, Mayer and Turgeon each had two hits to pace the 10-hit attack, as eight of the nine batters in the lineup recorded at least one safety. All nine scored at least one run, with Canessa and Van Hoven scoring twice, while Turgeon led the way with three RBI. Canessa and Lombard both added two RBI for the Rams.
FGCU's Ashl Dawson (1-1) was tagged with the loss after allowing seven runs (three earned) on seven hits in 2.0 innings of work. She also threw three wild pitches, did not walk a batter and fanned two. Alexis Ross went 2-for-2 with a RBI for the Eagles.
Fordham returns to action Saturday night when it plays South Florida at 8:15 p.m.
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