'Jacks blow by Lackawanna; ready for Cards
WYE MILLS – The Skipjacks prepped for their women's softball showdown with CCBC-Catonsville by taking down nationally ranked Lackawanna College, 14-9, Saturday afternoon.
Jenna Willey (3-for-4, two doubles) drove in five runs and Kristina Shank (2-for-2, three walks) had the go-ahead hit, a two-run single as part of a seven-run fifth as Chesapeake College won its fifth straight game. Chesapeake's win over the Falcons – ranked 20th in the latest NJCAA Division II poll – sends the Skipjacks into Wednesday's 3 p.m. home doubleheader against Catonsville with plenty of momentum.
They've got a nice team," Chesapeake head coach Durrie Hayes said of the Falcons. "Their pitcher [Barb Verrastro] threw the ball hard and they can hit. They beat Cumberland twice, who beat us twice."
Chesapeake built a 5-0 lead with a five-run second inning that included just one hit – a three-run double from Willey – and five walks by Verrastro. Lackawanna answered with a seven-run fourth that included consecutive, two-run doubles by Kara Voyton and Verrastro.
All seven fourth-inning runs by the Falcons were unearned due to a Skipjack error.
Rachael Milligan survived a rough fourth inning to earn a complete-game victory. Milligan (eight strikeouts) yielded 11 hits and three walks, but only two of the nine runs generated by Lackawanna were earned.
"She settled down," Hayes said of Milligan, who retired the last six Falcons to lock up the win. "They hit good pitches, and they just got a lot of hits right in a row in the fourth."
Chesapeake's game-winning, fifth-inning rally started innocently enough. Tori Hughes led off with a single, but was erased on Brittney Platt's fielder's choice grounder. After Milligan walked, Caroline Clarry struck out for the second out.
Savannah Miller followed with a bloop hit off second baseman Lauren Leppo's glove to score Platt and get the Skipjacks within 8-7. After a wild pitch moved Milligan to third and Miller to second, Cat Ramagnano walked to load the bases.
Shank followed with another hit off Leppo's glove, this one scoring Milligan and Miller to give Chesapeake a 9-8 lead. After a walk to Willey reloaded the bases, Abby Nelson delivered a two-run single and Hughes (2-for-3, walk) followed with a two-run double to cap the rally.
"We played well defensively except for the one inning," said Hayes, who noted both teams have to deal with less than ideal weather conditions. "It snowed in the first game. In the second game, right after we started, iced mixed with rain. It was just nasty, so we ended up calling the second game in the second inning."
The Skipjacks can now prep for Catonsville in what will be a critical, early season match-up.
"Most of the time we've played them [the Cardinals] late in the season," said Hayes, whose squad will be playing its first conference games of the season. "Catonsville is Catonsville. They've scored some runs early in the season and they've got a really good team. But we've got a saying this year: 'Play the game, not the team.' "