Bulldogs Sweep Wet and Wild Doubleheader with Hillsdale College to Conclude Spring Trip
Bulldogs Sweep Hillsdale in Rain-Soaked Doubleheader
March 14, 2008 Game 1 Box Game 2 Box
Lakeland, Fla. - After a slow start to the season, the Bulldog offense awoke in a big way Friday night as Bryant slugged its way to a doubleheader sweep of Hillsdale on a rainy night at Barnett Field on the campus of Florida Southern. With a steady rain beating down all night, the Bulldogs rallied for a 9-6 win in game one before hanging for a wild 13-5, mercy-rule win in game two.
Junior captain Stephanie Mirando's (North Haven, CT) bases-clearing triple with the bases loaded in the bottom of the sixth led the Bulldogs in game one, as Bryant was able to overcome six defensive errors.
The Bulldogs got on the board early when Jessica Valentini's (Cliffside Park, NJ) bases clearing double in the bottom of the first inning knotted the game after the Chargers scored three runs of their own off Bryant starter Janine Enos (Wareham, Mass.). Valentini would come home on a long double by the next batter Anne Dobmeier (Buffalo, NY).
The teams settled down during the middle innings with Hillsdale clinging to a 5-4 lead until Alison Chouinard (Swansea, Mass.) knocked in Regi Burdo (Wayne, PA) to tie the game at five. Hillsdale pitcher Ellen Eldridge followed with walks to Valentini and Dobmeier to push across Kim Breton (Leominster, Mass.) with the go-ahead run.
Mirando followed with a deep drive to left center that put the Bulldogs up 9-5. The Chargers loaded the bases with no outs thanks to the sixth error of the evening by the Bulldogs, but Enos (1-2) held Hillsdale to just one run to preserve the Bulldogs' first victory of the game. Dobmeier was 2 for 2 with two walks and two RBIs in the game. Mirando and Valentini finished the game with three RBI each.
In game two, the Bulldogs exploded for seven runs in the top of the third inning, helped by six walks from Hillsdale starter Kellie Hirst and capped off with a mammoth grand slam by Kate Thomas (Bedford, NH). Thomas stepped to the plate after Hirst had walked in three consecutive runs and launched a high drive that bounced off the top of and over the wall some 225 feet from home plate. The Dogs would tack on four more runs in the fifth.
The offensive explosion was enough support for starter Samantha Houseal (Mount Joy, PA). The freshman (1-2) shut down the Chargers for four innings, and a mercy-rule looked to be safe when Hillsdale came to bat down 12-0. However, the Chargers pushed across five runs, before the Bulldogs tacked on a 13th run and withstood a bases loaded jam in the bottom of the frame to enact the 8-run mercy rule.
The wins conclude the team's spring break trip to Florida. The Bulldogs return home with a 2-4 record and will play their next games March 27 at Franklin Pierce.