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Fairfax, Va. – The Fordham softball team finally dodged the rain and played its first game of this year's Atlantic 10 Championship, against Saint Louis in the quarterfinals, and began its fourth straight title defense with a 10-2 six-inning run-rule victory over the Billikens. With the win, the Rams improve to 43-14 on the year, the second-highest win total in the program's history, and will play Massachusetts on Saturday at 1 p.m.
Today was the first time all year the Rams faced Saint Louis and they jumped out to a quick 4-0 lead after two innings and never looked back, adding a pair of runs in the fourth frame and four more in the sixth to walk off. Senior
Lauren Quense got the start and picked up her 21
st victory, not allowing a hit over her first four frames.
The senior worked around two two-out walks in the first and the offense gave her a 2-0 lead on a one-out two-run single by
Lindsay Mayer, driving in
Sydney Canessa and
Jessica Hughes, who had walked and reached on a bunt single, respectively, to begin the half-inning. After a clean frame from Quense, the offense again scored two, this time with two outs. Canessa singled to left and scored all the way from first on a booming double to the left centerfield gap by Hughes. The sophomore scored a couple pitches later on
Madi Shaw's double to right center, the run being the 70
th driven in by the junior this season, the second Ram to ever reach the number. The Rams threatened in the third, putting runners on the corners with two outs, but couldn't bring them home, instead waiting until the fourth to tack on more runs.
Shaw walked to begin the fifth and moved to second on
Skylar Johnston's hard-hit single through the left side. After Mayer had popped up, Van Hoven reached on a fielder's choice, leaving runners on the corners, before Quense was hit on the elbow to load the bases.
Chelsea Skrepenak worked the count full, fouled a couple pitches off, and took ball four to bring in a run. An error by third baseman Allie Macfarlane on
Madie Aughinbaugh's grounder led to run number six before Canessa lined out to center, the lone time the senior made an out in five trips to the plate.
Saint Louis' Emma Buckles singled to lead off the fifth, the first hit given up by Quense on the day, and Alex Nickel's double drove her in. Nickel scored on the play, as well, advancing to third on the throw from the outfield and scoring on Hughes' errant through into the home dugout. Quense rebounded with three groundouts around a Macfarlane single.
Hughes walked to begin the home half of the fifth and Shaw punched a single down the left field line but the duo was left stranded. After a quick sixth frame, Quense led off the bottom of the inning with a walk. Skrepenak reached on a bunt single and Aughinbaugh sacrificed them over. Small ball wouldn't come into play, though, as Canessa ripped a three-run bomb to left center to put the Rams within one of the eight-run rule, which is exactly what would happen just moments later. Hughes again went the opposite way, tripling over the head of left fielder Josie Knesel, and was driven in by Johnston's single to left, ending the contest.
The top five in the batting order combined to bat 12-for-19 with five walks, slashing .632/.708/1.000, and the Rams again walked more than they struck out, seven to five, respectively. Both Canessa and Hughes finished 3-for-4 with three runs scored and a walk apiece.
Quense allowed just the three hits and two runs in the fourth inning, walking four, and striking out three.
Fordham moves on to the semi-finals to play Massachusetts. The American Sports Network and the A-10 Digital Network will carry live coverage of the game at 1 p.m., as will WFUV.
