Orange Welcomes Niagara For Doubleheader On Tuesday
4/8/2008 3:09:39 PM | Softball
SYRACUSE, N.Y. – The Syracuse softball team (12-19) enjoys one of its longest home stands when Niagara (13-15) comes to the SU Softball Stadium at SkyTop on Tuesday for a 4 p.m. doubleheader. The games will be the fifth and sixth straight home contests for the Orange – a stretch that will only be matched during the final three doubleheaders of the season. SU opened the doors to its home stadium against Providence on April 4 and 5 and produced back-to-back shutouts, 6-0 and 3-0.
Live stats will also be available via SUAthletics.com and fans can listen to the game by logging onto Orange All Access.
In a series that dates back only 2005, the Orange is 6-0 all-time against the Purple Eagles, including 6-4 and 8-7 wins in Niagara a year ago. Rachel Tilford hit a career-high two home runs during the second game. Chanel Roehner and Lindsay Wasek also had long balls during the day.
Brittany Gardner pitched a complete game, striking out three to earn the win during the first outing.
Gardner will try to improve on the 6-6 record she has posted this season. She tallied her third complete-game shutout of her career when she struck out seven during the second game against the Scarlet Knights. She threw the second game against the Huskies and struck out eight batters.
Junior catcher Amy Kelley batted .500 during the four games during the weekend and produced a career-high tying five RBI during game two on Sunday. She raised her batting average to .364 and increased her home run total to seven, which is tied for first in the conference. She ranks seventh in the BIG EAST for batting average.
During the second game against Providence, Wasek hit the Orange's second triple of the season and the second of her career to score senior outfielder Rachel Tilford. Wasek executed the hit and run to produce the game-winning RBI.
The Purple Eagles, who plays St. Peter’s on Monday, have won eight of their last 10, including a pair of victories at Manhattan on April 6. They took the first game, 8-6, and the second, 8-1.Tory Healy was named MAAC Player of the Week for her performance last week. She batted .571 with three multi-hit games. She went 8-for-14, driving in seven runs and scoring four times.
Niagara is killing the ball, posting a .288 average, a .510 slugging percentage and has unloaded 34 home runs. Felicia Coffey leads the team with 36 hits and a .424 average, while Jenna Baker has hit a team-high 9 home runs, helping her produce a team-best 22 RBI.
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