The Geneseo women's softball team hit the road this past week putting together a series of strong performances against conference foes SUNY Cortland and SUNY Oswego, facing Keuka College later in the weekend.
On Friday afternoon, the Knights took on the rival Red Dragons but fell in consecutive games 4-1 and 6-4. In the first game, Cortland scattered single runs in the first, second, fifth and sixth innings while Geneseo could only manage one run on five hits. Junior Janine Montera had a solid performance on the mound scattering five hits, three earned runs, two walks and four strikeouts.
"Cortland played a nice game," said Geneseo head coach Tony Ciccarello. "We didn't give them anything out there - they earned it. They had five hits and we had five hits, they just happened to use their hits more effectively."
In the second game, the Knights jumped out to an early first inning lead on a single by freshman Stefanie Rosenberg, a double by junior Sam Guarrera and a sacrifice fly by senior Katie Holm. The Red Dragons, however, tied the game in the bottom half of the inning and then took a commanding 6-1 lead in the second frame. In the seventh, Rosenberg belted a three-run homer to cut the deficit down to two, but it was too little too late.
Despite the losses, the attitude in the Geneseo clubhouse was one of positivity and Ciccarello addressed the team's feeling of turning the corner. "We're definitely improving," Ciccarello said. "The things that we were doing wrong before, we're fixing. We never quit and we're always in the game." That attitude certainly carried over as the Knights swept the next two series.
On Saturday, the squad went to bat against Oswego crushing them 11-0 and 7-2, compiling 23 hits in the two games. Montera set the tone for the Knights in the first game, tossing a three-hit shutout with five strikeouts, while freshman Jessica Steubing anchored the offense going 3-4 with a double, a home run and three RBIs.
Rosenberg continued her hot streak going 3-3 with two runs and an RBI, and junior Megan Pogemiller also had a stellar performance with two doubles and two RBIs. In the second game, sophomore Mary Bostwick held the Lakers to only four hits with two walks and seven strikeouts, and contributed to her own cause with two doubles at the plate. Senior Karen Wagner delivered the biggest blow of the game crushing a two-run homer in the fifth inning, allowing the Knights to win easily.
Geneseo closed out the week as they traveled to Keuka College and swept the Storm 9-0 in six innings. In the opener, the Knights broke a scoreless game, scoring three runs in the fifth inning and then tacking on six more runs to secure the victory in the sixth.
Pogemiller led the offense with two doubles and four RBIs, and sophomore KK Schaus, who missed two games due to an ankle injury, returned to the line-up going 2-3 with two runs and two RBIs. Montera had another stellar performance on the mound tossing a two-hit shutout with 11 strikeouts. Bostwick was also impressive in the second game allowing only three hits with eight strikeouts and going 2-4 at the plate. Holm led the Knights going a perfect 4-4 with three doubles and four RBIs and sophomore Kelsey Ogden tacked on two more hits with three runs scored.
The Knights improved to 13-11 on the season and continue their road trip at SUNY Brockport on Friday. Ciccarello said he is confident that his team is ready to make a push for the SUNYACs and that this past week's performance is indicative of that. "I'm really happy with the way the team is coming together and stepping up," he said. "I can see us starting to turn the corner."