Dominican Softball Hands Caldwell Cougars First Conference Loss in Double Header Split

Courtesy of Matt McLagan, SID at Caldwell College

CALDWELL, N.J. – Caldwell College sophomore Alyssa Speno (Waterloo, NY/Waterloo) hit a triple with the bases loaded in the bottom of the sixth inning to help the Cougars’ softball team earn a split of a Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference doubleheader with Dominican College on Saturday afternoon at Caldwell Field. The Cougars are now 12-8 overall and 5-1 in the CACC, while the Lady Chargers are 19-9 on the season and 4-4 in conference play.

Two runs in the top of the seventh allowed Dominican to erase an early 1-0 deficit and win the first game, 2-1. The Cougars took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first when Speno scored from third on a wild pitch. Senior pitcher Jessica Saunders (Glen Burnie, MD/Archbishop Spaulding), who took a two-hit shutout into the top of the seventh, gave up a lead-off single to Jackie Terpstra (Middletown, NY). After Terpstra was sacrificed to second, Christine Stathes (Cornwall, NY) reached on an error.  Michelle Krupna (Sparta, NJ) then doubled to left centerfield, scoring two runs and giving Dominican a 2-1 lead.  Stathes, who went the distance in the circle for the Lady Chargers, blanked the Cougars in the bottom of the seventh to preserve the win and improve her record to 8-2 on the season.

The second game started out as another pitcher’s battle between Caldwell junior Anna Dahl (Lindenwold, NJ/Camden Catholic) and Krupna, with neither allowing a run over the first five innings. In the top of the sixth, Terpstra put the Lady Chargers on the scoreboard when her single plated Jamie Ollari (Hopatcong, NJ), who had reached on an error. The Cougars responded in the bottom of the sixth, tying the game on Dahl’s RBI double that scored sophomore Nicole Bodrog (Mt. Laurel, NJ/Lenape), who led off the inning with a single. With runners on second and third and two out, senior Sara Neely (Middlesex, NJ/Middlesex) drew a walk to load the bases for Speno, who lined a shot that hit the fence in right centerfield and cleared the bases. Speno then scored on a wild pitch to give Caldwell a 5-1 lead. Dominican rallied in the top of the seventh with Ollari’s two-out, two-run double, but Dahl struck out the final batter to end the game.

Dahl (4-4) pitched a complete game, allowing eight hits and three runs, two earned, while striking out seven. Bodrog went 2 for 3 with a double at the plate for Caldwell, while Terpstra and Stathes each had a pair of hits for the Lady Chargers.

The Lady Chargers are back in action on Tuesday, April 4th when they travel to Felician College in a CACC double-header.