NORFOLK, Va. -
Freshman Vanessa Cardoza (Santa Ana, Calif./Ocean View) went 7-for-9 and junior
Christine Scherr (Nazareth, Pa./Nazareth Area) clubbed two home runs as the
Monmouth University softball team split a pair of games on the final day of the
2012 Norfolk State Spartan Classic. The Hawks fell to Army, 8-4, before bouncing
back with a convincing 14-6 victory over Delaware on Sunday to finish as the
unofficial champions of the tournament at 3-1. Army, Delaware and host Norfolk
State each finished the event with at least two losses, giving Monmouth the
upper hand.
Cardoza finished with a pair
of doubles, four RBI and three runs scored. Scherr blasted a pair of solo home
runs and finished with three RBI and four runs scored. Kayla Weiser
(Vandergrift, Pa./Kiski Area) went 6-for-9 on the day with four runs scored,
while Kaitie Schumacher had three hits, including her second round-tripper in
as many days, and a team-high five RBI.
Lauren Sulick (Canfield,
Ohio/Canfield) picked up the win in the circle against Delaware, allowing four
runs, but only one earned, on five hits and five walks over four innings. She
struck out one. After taking the loss in relief against Army, Jordan Barnett
(Eads, Colo./Eads [Garden City C.C.]) registered her third save in as many
Hawks victories this weekend in the win over Delaware. All told, Barnett
scattered 11 hits and one walk while striking out three in 6.1 innings. She
allowed six runs, four of which were earned. Alissa Schoelkopf (Sewell, N.J./Washington
Township) got the start against Army, allowing four runs, one earned, on seven
hits and two walks while striking out four in 3.2 innings of work.
The Monmouth line-up lit up
Delaware pitching to the tune of 22 hits. Cardoza led the way with a 5-for-5
effort with two doubles, while Weiser was close behind, going 4-for-5 with a
team-high four runs scored. Scherr smacked both of her home runs against the Blue
Hens, while Schumacher also went yard against Delaware as part of a four-RBI
performance.
The Hawks immediately jumped
on Delaware starting pitcher Hannah Rust, as Scherr greeted the Blue Hens
hurler with a leadoff homer in the top of the first. Alicia DeSanto (Upper
Darby, Pa./Upper Darby), Weiser, Kate Kuzma (Freehold, N.J./Colts Neck) and Cardoza
followed with consecutive singles to chase Rust before she could record an out.
Shannon Fitzgerald (Santa Clarita, Calif./Valencia) later singled in a run and
Chelsea Paprocki (Manassas, Va./Forest Park) plated another run with a
sacrifice fly to give Monmouth a 4-0 lead after a half inning.
The Blue Hens got three runs
in the bottom of the second, but the Hawks never relinquished the lead in the
game. Monmouth scored once in the third, four runs in the fourth, two in the fifth
and three in the seventh.
In the 9 a.m. opener against
Army, the Hawks jumped out to a 2-0 lead with a pair of second-inning tallies.
Cardoza opened the inning with a single before advancing to second on a wild
pitch. She then moved to third on a groundout and scored on Schumacher's one-out
single through the left side. With two outs, Jenna Jaquish (Highland,
Calif./Redlands East Valley) reached on a two-base error by the third baseman
and scored on Scherr RBI single.
But Army struck for four runs
in the fourth. After the Black Knights' leadoff hitter doubled, Army attempted
to bunt the runner over to third, but Schoelkopf threw errantly, allowing one
run to score and another runner to reach second base. The next batter singled
in another run before being thrown out at second base. Three more singles, an
error and an illegal pitch resulted in two more runs to push the Army advantage
to 4-2.
The Hawks got Schoelkopf off
the hook for a loss by scoring twice in the fifth to tie the game at 4-4. After
Scherr walked and advanced on a fielder's choice throwing error that put
DeSanto on first, Weiser singled in Scherr with a single to center. Later in
the stanza, Cardoza's single through the left side plated pinch runner Katie
Bussman (Brick, N.J./Monsignor Donovan).
But Army tacked on four runs
in the sixth and seventh to take the 8-4 win.
The Hawks return
to action March 8, when they travel to College Station, Texas, to take part in
the Aggie Invitational, hosted by Texas A&M. First pitch against the Aggies
is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Also taking part in the tournament are Liberty and
North Dakota State.
