NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. – The Fairfield University softball split a pair of games at the Rutgers Invitational Tournament today, picking up a 3-0 shutout against the College of the Holy Cross before falling to Stony Brook University by 5-1 count in eight innings.
In the opener, pitcher
Katie Kudlacik seemed in control for most of the game, allowing just two hits over her seven innings of work. The senior collected her second win of the season with the complete game performance.
The Stags picked up a trio of single runs over the course of the game, the first coming in the opening inning.
Haley Updegraff started the game with a double to center field and came home when
Charli Warren placed down a sacrifice bunt that misplayed into an extra base for each base runner.
Fairfield added to its lead with a two-out rally in the third inning as Warren started things with a two-out single. She stole second in front of
Kaitlin Hoffman's walk which placed runners on first and second.
Mikayla Rubin made good on the scoring chance with an RBI single that doubled the lead to 2-0.
The final run came home in the fifth inning when Updegraff stroked another double to place herself into scoring position. After Warren bunted her to third base, Hoffman brought her across the plate with her ground out the left side of the infield.
Fairfield was not as fortunate in the second game as the Stags and the Seawolves battled each other to a scoreless game after seven innings of play. Stony Brook put runners on base in each of the odd innings but was retired in order in the second, fourth, and sixth innings. Fairfield has runners on the paths in five of the first seven innings, placing runners in scoring position on occasion but unable to bring the runner across the plate.
All of the scoring came in the eighth inning as Stony Brook broke the game open with five runs in the top of the eighth inning. After the Seawolves scored on a wild pitch, the team would score the rest of its runs off Alyssa Costello's grand slam that put the score at 5-0.
The Stags tried to rally in the bottom of the eighth inning but managed only one run by the end of the frame. Rubin brought the team's lone run home with a sacrifice fly with one out in the inning.
Fairfield will continue play on its schedule when it travels to the University of Hartford for a single game on Wednesday. The Stags will play their first home games of the 2022 season when they host Stony Brook University for a doubleheader on Saturday, March 26 at Alumni Softball Field. First pitch is at noon.
