Softball Falls to #3 Florida

Box Score (pdf)

Orlando, Fla. – The Fordham softball team faced its third nationally ranked opponent on Friday afternoon, the #3 Florida Gators, but fell, 4-0. Lauren Quense took her first loss of the season in seven attempts as the Rams fell to 7-4 on the year. The Gators, ranked first overall a week ago, improved to 12-1 overall.
 
Quense had won earned the win in six straight starts, including over #21 Baylor in the season opener, coming into today's match-up. The senior hurled five innings of two-hit ball before a four-run sixth. Florida's Delanie Gourley was masterful, tossing seven shutout innings of one-hit ball with no walks and nine strikeouts.
 
One of the two hits that Quense gave up in those first five innings came on the first batter of the game, a single back up the middle that the speedy Amanda Lorenz beat out. She walked one batter in each of the next two innings before a clean fourth and a one-out single in the fifth. In the sixth, Quense allowed a one-out walk and a RBI single after Nicole DeWitt stole second. After another single and then a groundout, Jordan Roberts struck a three-run home run to break the game open. Fordham's lone hit was an opposite-way single by Jessica Hughes in the fourth inning.
 
Quense falls to 6-1 in her seven starts but notched her fifth complete game.
 
Prior to Florida, the Rams faced off against the Czech Republic senior national team, defeating the red and white, 8-2, after a six-run fifth inning. Freshman Stephanie Rundlett started and allowed two runs in four innings before giving way to Taylor Stocks who tossed three scoreless innings. Fordham got on the board via a Lindsay Mayer RBI double, scoring Sydney Canessa, then Hughes plated the go-ahead runs with a bases-clearing three-run triple. Mayer and Chelsea Skrepenak added solo home runs, as well.  
 
The Rams will play Oakland and Elon tomorrow beginning at 3:30 p.m. Drew Casey and WFUVSports.org will have both broadcasts online.