CORTLAND, N.Y. (May 14, 2017) – After winning five straight postseason contests, the Widener University softball team concluded its most memorable season in school history in the championship round of its NCAA Regional on Sunday at Dragon Field. The Pride fell to host SUNY Cortland by scores of 10-2 in five innings and 7-2 in a winner-take-all game.
Cortland (33-13) caught fire in the second inning of the opener by scoring six times with two outs and never looked back. Even though she was down to her last strike, Ericka Sadowski sliced a bases-clearing double and advanced to third when the ball was misplayed by the Widener defense. Andrea Schoonmaker and Rosie Phillips then followed with back-to-back doubles to extend the margin to five, and Nikki Barbato found a hole to bring home another run before being tagged out by relief pitcher Devin Coyne (Chesapeake, Va.).
The Dragons continued to pound the ball in the middle innings to end the game early due to the eight-run rule. Skyler Hoyt most notably went yard for the third time of the tournament to make it 8-0 at the time and put the game out of reach, as a pair of RBI singles by sophomore Liv Rogers (West Chester, Pa.) and senior Liz Antonucci (Nesconset, N.Y.) would not be enough to overcome the large deficit.
Cortland's Jamie Lachall picked up the victory and improved to 13-8 by allowing five hits and two runs, which were both earned, while going the distance. She also struck out four and issued two walks. Senior Alexis Schengrund (Hillsborough, N.J.) of Widener was tagged with the loss and dropped to 6-3 after surrendering six runs, which were all earned, and four hits over one and two-thirds frames.
The Red Dragons drew first blood in the second game, as Barbato hit a sacrifice fly to center that was deep enough to score Schoonmaker before Kaleigh Churchill sent a rocket down the line in left to double the margin.
Following a rain delay which lasted more than an hour, Cortland's bats stayed hot and the hosts tacked on three more runs in the bottom of the third by having four straight batters reach base. Kelly O'Gorman did most of the damage by blasting a two-run double to left center, and the hosts added extra insurance in the middle innings to advance to next week's NCAA Super Regional against St. John Fisher.
Alexandra Flint earned the win in the circle for Cortland and improved her record to 11-4. She yielded nine hits and two runs, which were both earned, fanned six and issued one walk in five and two-thirds innings of work. Widener senior Ally Horvath (Chalfont, Pa.) suffered the loss after giving up seven hits and five runs, including four earned, and recording a pair of strikeouts over two frames. She finished the spring with an 11-4 ledger.
During the postgame ceremony, junior Taylor Allen (North East, Md.) and Horvath were recognized as members of the all-tournament team. Allen batted .571 by going 4-for-7 from the plate. She also drove in three runs, recorded a .727 on-base percentage and slugged at a .571 clip. Horvath was the Pride's winning pitcher in yesterday's 2-1 Messiah victory, batted .308 and stole three bases on as many attempts.
Widener (28-13) completed its most historic season in school history by winning its first Middle Atlantic Conference Commonwealth title and making its first-ever appearance in the NCAA Regionals. The graduating senior class consisting of Nicole Burt (Staten Island, N.Y.), Bree VanReenen (Elkton, Md.), Antonucci, Coyne, Horvath and Schengrund also helped the program win 105 games over the past four seasons and make an appearance in the conference tournament every year.
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NCAA Div. III Softball Cortland, N.Y. Regional All-Tournament Team
Kristin Frost (Johnson & Wales)
Emily Quatrale (Messiah)
Carrie Fix (Messiah)
Ally Horvath (Widener)
Taylor Allen (Widener)
Mikayla Shade (Cortland)
Ericka Sadowski (Cortland)
Kaleigh Churchill (Cortland)
Skyler Hoyt (Cortland)
Most Outstanding Player - Rosie Phillips (Cortland)
