HACKENSACK, N.J. - The Monmouth University softball team, seeded second, split its two games on the first day of the 2010 Northeast Conference Tournament at the FDU Softball Field on Friday afternoon, defeating #3 Quinnipiac University, 6-0 in the First Round and falling to top-seeded Long Island University, 7-2 in the winner's bracket game.
MU, now 29-17 on the season, will face fourth-seeded Robert Morris University at 10:00 am on Saturday for the right to take on the Blackbirds in the Championship Round. The Colonials eliminated Quinnipiac with a 3-0 extra-inning win in the first loser's bracket game on Friday, while the Blackbirds advance to the Championship Round with a perfect 2-0 record in the tournament.
LIU scored four runs in the bottom of the first inning to seize control of the winner's bracket game. MU responded with a pair of runs in the top of the sixth, one on a RBI single from senior Jessica Nicola (South Amboy, N.J. /Sayreville War Memorial) and the other on a run-scoring ground from Kayla Weiser (Vandergrift, Pa. /Kiski Area).
However, the Blackbirds countered with three in the bottom of the sixth for the final 7-2 score. Monmouth starter Melissa Mehrer (Florence, N.J. /Florence Township) took the loss against LIU, dropping to 16-9 on the season.
In their first game on the afternoon, the #2 Hawks defeated third-seeded Quinnipiac University, 6-0 in the first round. MU starter Lauren Sulick (Canfield, Ohio /Canfield) in the circle against Quinnipiac, and it proved dividends as the sophomore logged a complete-game, two-hitter to improve to 13-6 on the season. She struck out four and walked two in the win over the Bobcats.
Senior Alexa Ferrara (West Caldwell, N.J. /James Caldwell) led-off the bottom of the second with a single down the right field line and advanced to second on an error by the Bobcats' right fielder. Freshman Kate Kuzma (Freehold, N.J. /Colts Neck) advanced her to third with a sacrifice bunt and with a full count and two outs in the bottom of the frame, sophomore Chelsea Paprocki (Manassas, Va. /Forest Park) blasted a two-run home run, the first of her career, over the left center field fence to give the Hawks a 2-0 lead.
Freshman Tish Derer (Philadelphia, Pa. /Saint Basil Academy) laced a 2-2, two-out double down the left field line in the bottom of the fifth to start another MU scoring rally. Classmate Christine Scherr (Nazareth, Pa. /Nazareth Area) walked to put runners on first and second and junior Emily deLong (Rothschild, Wisc. /DC Everest) roped a 1-2 line-drive homer over the left field fence to put MU up, 5-0.
Ferrara then led off the sixth with a single up the middle and Kuzma went to lay down a sac bunt, but the Quinnipiac defender overthrew first base and the runners advanced to third and second, respectively. With freshman Anniela Vaccaro (Fresh Meadows, N.Y. /Archbishop Molloy) pinch-running at third, Paprocki laced a line drive that QU starter Heather Schwartzburg knocked down and threw to first to record the out, but the run scored for the Hawks, putting them up 6-0.
