Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 WEST LONG BRANCH, N.J. - Amanda Riley (Tracy, Calif./John C. Kimball) allowed just two hits and
Justene Reyes (Carson, Calif./Warren) drove in all three Hawks runs in a Game 2 victory as the Monmouth University softball team split a doubleheader with Iona Saturday afternoon at MU Softball Park. With the split, the Hawks move to 8-15 (4-2 MAAC), while the Gaels are now 6-21 (3-5 MAAC).
Kayleena Flores (Atwater, Calif./Buhach Colony) added four hits and a run over the two games, while
Brooke Redmond (Cooksville, Md./Glenelg) also went 2-for-2 with a run scored in the Game 2 victory.
Emma Hill (Rae, Mo./King City [Highland C.C.]) added two hits, three runs scored and three stolen bases, while
Ashalynn Umiamaka (Kapolei, Hawaii/Kapolei [Eastern Arizona]) had three hits, including a double, and an RBI.
Chloe Howerth (Roscoe, Ill./Hononegah) also chipped in with two hits, two runs scored and a stolen base.
Riley allowed just two hits, both to Iona's Kristen Turner, in the complete-game victory in Game 2. She allowed two earned runs, striking out four and walking one.
Sydney Underhill (Temecula, Calif./Chaparral) took the Game 1 loss, allowing four earned runs on seven hits in two-plus innings.
Breanna Sniffen (Winter Garden, Fla./West Orange [St. Petersburg College]) pitched five innings of relief, allowing four runs, one earned, on seven hits and a walk. She struck out five.
In Game 1, the Hawks scored single runs in the first through fourth innings, but Iona struck for three in the second, one in the third, three more in the fifth and an insurance run in the sixth to take the victory.
Hill walked, stole second, advanced to third on a Howerth sacrifice bunt and scored on Umiamaka's single through the left side in the first. A Lauren Filardi RBI double, a run-scoring groundout and an Allison Hand RBI single accounted for Iona's three runs in the three-run second, before Monmouth cut the deficit to 3-2 when Flores scored on a muffed throw at first on the would-be third out.
A Christine Costello double and a Turner single gave Iona a 4-2 lead before Sniffen took over in the circle. After loading the bases with no one out, the senior escaped trouble with a shallow flyout and two groundouts back to the circle. Howerth and Umiamaka hit consecutive singles to open the third, with Howerth taking third on the second single and Umiamaka advancing on the throw to give Monmouth runners on second and third. A throwing error allowed Howerth to score, but it was all Monmouth could manage, making it a 4-3 Iona lead after three.
A two-run single by Katie Newton and a Brianna King RBI single in the top of the fourth extended Iona's lead to 7-3. Howerth drove in Hill with a two-out RBI single to cut the deficit to 7-4 in the bottom of the fourth, but it was the last run Monmouth would score in the game. Iona added an insurance run on Filardi's RBI single in the sixth.
In Game 2, Riley issued a leadoff walk to Hand before Turner took her deep to left to give Iona a 2-0 lead. That was the last hit the Gaels would get until the seventh. Riley faced the minimum in the second through sixth innings, with only one base runner reaching via an error. That baserunner was erased as Riley induced a double-play ball.
The Hawks got a run back in the bottom of the first as Hill singled, stole second and scored on Reyes' infield single. After three scoreless frames, Monmouth struck for two more in the fifth. A Redmond single, Howerth walk and Umiamaka hit-by-pitch loaded the bases for Reyes, who singled on a line drive to right to score the game-winning runs.
Riley allowed her first hit since the first inning to Turner with one out in the seventh, but ended the game by freezing Newton with an offering on the outside corner.
The Hawks return to conference action Sunday, when they travel to Manhattan. First pitch from Riverdale, N.Y., is scheduled for 10 a.m.
