Bulldogs walk-off; Play for NEC title on Saturday

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Junior Madeline Velasquez (Los Angeles, Calif.) scampered home with the winning run in the bottom of the ninth inning as the top-seeded Bryant University softball team came from behind to defeat second-seeded Central Connecticut in the Northeast Conference tournament on Friday morning at Conaty Park.

With the victory, the Bulldogs (31-20) have earned a spot in the NEC Championship round for the first time in program history and will play on Saturday at 12:00 p.m. The Blue Devils (29-15) will face the winner of the LIU Brooklyn-FDU game at 3:30 Friday to determine who will be the Bulldogs' opponent on Saturday.

"Our team did a great job of fighting the whole time whether we were up or down," head coach Shayne Lotito said. "They never gave up at any point and just kept pushing and kept pushing."

Tied at 2-2 in the bottom of the ninth, Velasquez started the rally with a sharp single to left field and advanced all the way to second on an errant throw from the outfield. Sophomore Elle Madsen (Wheat Ridge, Colo.) walked and classmate Hayley Bottino (Canyon Country, Calif.) moved both runners up with a ground ball to the right side. Freshman Taylor Burger (Killingworth, Conn.) then drew a walk to load the bases for senior Lauren Guy (La Habra, Calif.). Facing an 0-1 count, Guy hit a ground ball to third that was fielded cleanly but throw home was dropped by the catcher, allowing Velasquez to score with the winning run.

Central Connecticut grabbed the early lead on Friday, scoring single runs in the fourth and fifth innings. In the fourth, Kat Malcolm singled to leadoff the inning, advanced to second on a foul pop and then scored on a fielding error by the Black and Gold. Arielle Bruno made it a two-run cushion with a solo home run to start the fifth.

Facing the NEC Pitcher of the Year, the Bulldogs were unfazed by the deficit and used a two-out rally in the sixth to tie the game. Senior Kendall Corder (Carmichael, Calif.) started the rally with a single up the middle and classmate Aubrey Mable (Aurora, Colo.) followed with a sinking line drive that eluded the dive of the CCSU right fielder. Corder sped around the bases and was able to avoid the tag at home to score the first Bulldog run of the game. Velasquez then rapped a single back through the box to score Mable and tie the game at 2-2.

"We knew we just had to chip away and get one," Lotito said of her team's mentality heading into the sixth. "They waited to get their pitch and knew it was only a matter of time until the hits started coming."

Madsen and Bryant's defense then did the rest, holding the Blue Devils off the board the rest of the afternoon. Madsen induced three ground outs in the seventh and retired CCSU in order in the eighth. The Blue Devils threatened in the ninth as a pair of singles put two on with one out. Madsen then got a ground ball to short for the second out and the Bulldogs were able to get out of the inning as Corder threw behind the runner at first and sophomore Liana Ogata (Tustin, Calif.) made a diving tag to end the inning.

The NEC Player of the Year was also dominant at one of the most crucial times of the game as she escaped a bases-loaded, no-out situation in the third. A throwing error, double and a walk loaded the bases but Madsen responded by striking out Evie Rentzel for the first out. She then induced a ground ball to third that Bottino threw home for the second out before striking out Alexis Debrosse swinging to end the inning. Madsen struck out four, walked three and allowed eight hits over nine innings to earn her 24th victory of the season. Messina struck out nine on the day, allowing just six hits.

Velasquez picked up three of Bryant's hits on the afternoon and the top four in Bryant's order combined for all of the hits, RBI and runs scored in the game.

The Bulldogs will have the rest of Friday off as they prepare for the NEC title game on Saturday.

"We worked all season to get to this point and now it's in front of us and we have the opportunity to take it," Lotito said.