Softball avoids sweep with late inning heroics against Villanova

The Tigers clawed their way through a softball doubleheader yesterday against Villanova. Despite a 1-0 loss in the first game, Princeton made a comeback in the second to tie it at 3-3 before the game was called in the ninth inning.

The Tiger offense struggled throughout the first game against Villanova's Theresa Hornick, who pitched a no-hitter.

The Wildcats, meanwhile, had three hits and a run by the top of the sixth inning. They dominated with a single in the third followed by a steal to second base. Villanova had another steal to second in the fourth inning as well as two singles.

Despite steady pitching by sophomore pitcher/infielder Melissa Finley, Villanova connected for another hit in the fifth and put a run on the board in the top of the sixth. Wildcat Ricci Lugo led the play with a single, advancing to second after junior first base Kristin Del Calvo fumbled a wild pass from freshman infielder Christina Cobb-Adams. Lugo raced home after a deep hit down center field to score the only run of the game.

Though the Tigers held their own defensively, holding Villanova to just one run, Princeton struggled offensively against a dominating pitcher.

"We need to be more patient in the batter's box," sophomore outfielder Nicole Davida said. "We need to look for our pitch and hit it."

Princeton seemed like it would pick itself up at the start of the second game with solid play from the field. Cobb-Adams led the team with a tremendous play — she nabbed a bullet hurling toward her chest and reacted with an immediate throw to Del Calvo at first base, completing the double play and punishing Villanova with two outs right away.

The Tigers could not carry their strength from the field to bat, however. The same story from the first game repeated itself at the onset of the game, as consistency in fielding could not be mirrored by hitters. Sophomore infielder/outfielder Kristin Lueke, followed by Del Calvo and Cobb-Adams, were out on fly balls in the first.

Villanova led the offensive surge in the fifth with a run, putting the Wildcats on the scoreboard. In the seventh inning, Villanova earned another run.

However, the Tigers tied it up when, in the seventh inning, freshman infielder Amanda Erickson blasted a homerun. The long ball tied the game at two, as Wendy Bingham stood on third base when Erickson hit it over the fence.

Villanova then scored in the eighth, but a home run a half inning later by Del Calvo evened the game. The contest was finally called in the ninth inning due to darkness, with the final score 3-3.

Princeton will hope to gain from its experience yesterday as it faces its first Ivy match of the season this weekend against Penn.

Get the best of the ‘Prince’ delivered straight to your inbox. Subscribe now »

The Quakers have had a streaky season thus far. The team began its season strong. In the first two invitational tournaments in which the Quakers played, the Penn Invitational and the City Six Invitational, they won four games and lost only two.

However, Spring Break did not fare well for Penn. The team went down to Georgia for the Buzz Classic where it lost three of four games. Just as the Quakers get ready to play Princeton, also their first Ivy match-up, they are deep into a set of four straight losses.

Before yesterday, Princeton had coasted through six straight wins. The Tigers earned confidence from their victories, but they recognize they will need to gear up for a higher level of Ivy play.

"We have been winning lately, but we can still score more runs which would help us against any team especially as we start seeing some of the better competition in the league," Del Calvo said.