Fairfield Advances to Championship Round with 7-3 Win Over Siena
MAAC Sports
BUFFALO, N.Y. – Second- seed Fairfield University advanced to the championship round by defeating fourth-seed Siena College, 7-3, in an elimination game of the 2015 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Softball Championship at Demske Sports Complex in Buffalo, New York on the campus of Canisius College.
The first run of the game was scored on a sacrifice fly by Fairfield’s Tori Reed, giving the Stags a 1-0 lead.
Both teams remained hitless heading into the bottom of the third, until Lauren Filicia’s line drive back at the pitcher recorded the first hit of the game for Fairfield. The Stags would then score another run after a throwing error on a sacrifice bunt attempt. A sacrifice fly by Sam Frungillo would extend the Fairfield lead to 3-0, with all three runs unearned.
Siena’s bats would come alive in the top of the fourth, with Abby Carpenter hitting a single to center field for the first Siena hit of the game. After Paige Hess was hit by a pitch, Alyssa Lancaster singled to left field loading the bases. Melanie Kalesse’s RBI single put the Saints on the scoreboard, making the score 3-1. Siena would add one more run on a sacrifice fly by Lauren Milligan, cutting the deficit to 3-2. Fairfield responded in the bottom of the fourth from Nicole Capra’s solo homerun, extending the Fairfield lead to 4-2. Filicia’s RBI groundout would then add to the Stags lead, making it 5-2 over Siena.
After Siena came up short on scoring runs in the top of the fifth, Fairfield’s Frungillo drove in another run with an RBI double to left field for the Stags, extending the advantage to 6-2. Fairfield was awarded another run in the inning on a throwing error that went out of play, making the score 7-2.
The score would be cut to 7-3 after Siena’s Hess hit a solo homerun to right centerfield in the top of the sixth.
With Fairfield failing to score in the bottom part of the sixth, Siena opened up the top of the seventh needing four runs to survive, but Fairfield pitcher Lauren Falkanger would earn strikeouts on two of the final three outs, moving Fairfield into the championship round.
Fairfield’s Falkanger (11-11) received the complete game win, striking out eight batters. Amanda Gatt (10-12) was the losing pitcher in the contest, also retiring eight batters.
Fairfield will advance to the championship round on Saturday at 12:00 p.m., and will face fifth-seed Monmouth University. Siena’s 2015 season concluded with an overall record of 21-27-1.