SALISBURY, Md. - For the second time in as many
days sophomore Kelsey Mills pitched a no-hitter as
Salisbury University softball closed out the second day of its
invitational at Sea Gull Field. Mills and company shutout SUNY
Geneseo 11-0 in the first game on Saturday and followed that with a
6-2 victory over The College of New Jersey.
Salisbury (13-4) has won nine straight games in the
past nine days as the Sea Gulls hosted back-to-back weekend
tournaments. The day before Mills (5-2) no-hit SUNY Plattsburgh
4-0. On Saturday, the right-hander faced 22 batters and struck out
a career-high 13. She just missed a perfect game as she walked one
Blue Knight (4-6). This is the third no-hitter for Mills this
season and the third in the past four starts. In fact, Mills no-hit
the Blue Knights back on March 13 when the Gulls won 18-2 at the
Henry Parker Athletic Complex in the Sea Gull Invitational. In the
past five pitching appearances for Mills, since her first
no-hitter, she has posted a 4-0 record, 0.00 ERA, pitched 27
innings where she struck out 33 batters. She even recorded her
first save in the 5-2 win over No. 23 Ithaca College on Friday
afternoon.
In the 11-0 win over the Blue Knights the Sea Gulls had 14 hits,
as the entire starting line-up recorded at least one hit, and
scored at least one run from the second inning until the seventh
except for the sixth. The top of the SU batting order (first four
batters) went a combined 8-for-18 at the plate, scored four runs
and knocked in seven RBIs. The Sea Gulls also had five doubles and
one home run in the 11-run victory.
Lead-off hitter Kelly Waskewicz (3-for-4)
collected one of the doubles while designated player
Brittany Lounge (2-for-3), catcher Lauren
Brenneman (2-for-3) and second baseman Stacey
Malarkey (1-for-5) all drove in two runs apiece. Malarkey
hit her fourth home run of the season in the seventh inning as her
she cleared the right field fence. Two runs scored on the opposite
field shot. SU scored four runs in the fifth and seventh innings.
In the top of the fifth inning, Mills (one run) started things
off with a single down the left field line which was followed by
three consecutive doubles by junior outfielder Jen
Cahall (two RBIs), senior outfielder Meghan
O'Gara (two runs, two doubles, two RBIs) and Waskewicz. SU
led 7-0 after that inning.
In the second game, Salisbury hosted The College of New Jersey
in a non-conference game. The Sea Gulls struck first in the bottom
of the second inning as the maroon and gold pushed across two runs.
The Lions (7-9) added a run in the top of the fifth inning to cut
the lead to one, 2-1, before the Sea Gulls scored three in the
bottom half to take a comfortable 5-1 lead into the final two
innings.
SU had eight hits, four of which were doubles, as the bottom
half of the Sea Gull line-up did a lot of the damage at the plate.
The final four batters in Salisbury's line-up batted a combined
5-for-9, scored three runs, hit three doubles and drove in three of
SU's six runs. Sophomore third baseman Kristin
Lord (2-for-3, two runs, one RBI) led the way for the Sea
Gulls.
In the three-run fifth inning Malarkey came up with the big hit
with the bases loaded as she plated two runs.
Senior pitcher Stacy Davis (7-2) earned the win
as she went the distance for the Sea Gulls. Davis allowed two runs
on four Lion hits, walked three and struck out four batters.
SU will next travel up Rt. 13 to Dover, Del., to take on Wesley
College on Wednesday, March 25, in a Capital Athletic Conference
doubleheader that begins at 3 p.m.
NOTES: In other 2009 SU Invitational action on
Saturday...No. 23 Ithaca College beat Capital University 3-1 but
the Bombers lost their first game 6-5 to Geneseo in eight
innings...Capital defeated SUNY Plattsburgh 2-0...The
Cardinals from Plattsburgh defeated TCNJ 4-1 in nine inning in the
first game of the day at the Henry Parker Athletic
Complex...Salisbury was the only team to win four games...Capital
went 3-1 during the two-day invitational.
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