CLEARWATER, Fla. -- The Fordham softball team continued play Saturday at the Michele Smith Pediatric Cancer Foundation Invitational and lost to a pair of nationally-ranked teams. The Rams dropped their opener to #19/20 James Madison, 11-4, before falling in the nightcap to #12/14 Tennessee, 10-2, in a six innings. With the losses, Fordham falls to 2-7 on the season, while with the wins, the Dukes improve to 7-1 and the Volunteers to 6-3 overall.
Game OneJMU scored all the runs it would need over the first two innings by scoring two in the first, four more in the second and a single run in the third to jump out to a 7-0 lead.
The Rams made it interesting in the top of the fifth when they scored four times to cut the deficit to 7-4. Senior
Cailin Winokur was plunked to start the inning, before being erased when freshman
Jordana Storm reached on a fielder's choice. Freshman
Jessica Hughes followed with a single up the middle, and junior
Amy Van Hoven reached on an error to load the bases.
Junior
Sydney Canessa then delivered a two-run single to score freshman
Chelsea Skrepenak, who reentered for Storm on the bases, and Hughes. Mayer plated Van Hoven with a RBI single to right center field, and graduate student
Rachel Gillen capped the scoring by driving home Canessa with a RBI single to center. Fordham still had two more outs to work with in the inning but could not do any further damage.
The Dukes, however, put the game away in the bottom of the sixth with their second four spot of the day to make the final score 11-4.
Junior
Lauren Quense (1-3) was charged with the loss in the circle after lasting just two innings, as she allowed six runs – five earned – on six hits to go along with two walks and one strikeout. Mayer tossed 3.1 innings of relief and was touched up for five earned runs on five hits while walking three and striking out one.
Gillen led the offense with two hits and a RBI, as the Rams managed only five in the contest.
Megan Good (4-1) paced JMU both in the circle and at the plate. She threw 6.2 innings, allowed just two hits and two walks, and struck out five. Offensively, Good finished 3-for-6 with a double, a pair of home runs and six RBI. The Dukes finished with 11 hits.
Game TwoFordham allowed single runs in the second, third and fourth innings, before the Volunteers plated two runs in the bottom of the fourth to slowly take a 5-0 lead. The Rams had runners in scoring position in four of the five innings but could not come up with the big hit to break through.
In the top of the sixth, Fordham scored both of its runs with two outs when sophomore Morgan Figueora and Storm both came around when Van Hoven reached on a fielding error by the second baseman. The Volunteers then clinched the game with the run rule when they scored four times in the bottom of the frame to make the final tally 10-2.
Gillen (1-4) went the distance in the circle and was roughed up for 10 earned runs on 13 hits while walking seven and fanning four. Hughes finished a perfect 4-for-4 at the plate and stole a base to lead the offense, which finished with eight hits.
Matty Moss (2-0) earned the victory in the circle by scattering six hits, issuing no walks and recording one strikeout over 4.0 innings of work, before Rainey Gaffin tossed the final two innings to collect her first save of the season. Megan Greer homered, drove in three and scored twice for Tennessee, who had 11 hits, with four different players collecting two and four more scoring twice.
Up NextFordham returns to action Sunday at 11:15 a.m. when it plays #3/3 Auburn to conclude the tournament.
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