Senior pitcher Taylor Moore (pictured above) winds up at the mound on Saturday April 13 against SUNY Cortland. Moore pitched seven scoreless innings in a 1-0 win over the Red Dragons (Udeshi Seneviratne/Photo Editor).
After a 3-1 record over the weekend, the Knights are in a good spot and have a chance at hosting the conference playoffs again this year. On Thursday April 11, SUNY Oswego put up a good fight in the first game, but the Knights showed to be too much and outscored the Lakers 7-5, and then 8-0 in the second five-inning game.
The Lakers held an early 1-0 lead in the first of the two games. It did not last long as the Knights evened up the game when senior outfielder Alyssa Persich scored in the first inning. Oswego regained their lead and extended their advantage to three runs midway through the fourth. Geneseo responded with two runs before the inning ended to cut the deficit to a single score.
Junior infielder Abbey Whitney recorded an RBI single and senior catcher Taylor Fedor added another run by sending junior outfielder Hannah Elmer home. Oswego was unable to match the pace offensively and Geneseo finally took the lead after a bases-loaded double from Elmer. The Knights never relinquished their lead after that and secured the 7-5 victory.
During the double header’s second game, Geneseo stepped up defensively. Junior pitcher Ashlyn Kersch performed exceptionally and only allowed two hits. Offensively the Knights were firing on all cylinders as they piled on eight runs in the shutout win.
“We had a really solid defense and were able to stay strong in our at-bats. We outhit Oswego in both games and that helped us come out on top,” sophomore outfielder Angela Van Pelt said.
Two days later, in a rematch of the 2018 SUNYAC championship, the Knights took on the SUNY Cortland Red Dragons on Saturday April 13.
In game one, senior pitcher Taylor Moore was the star. She threw seven scoreless innings which lead to a tight 1-0 win. The game’s lone run came from junior infielder Brooke Wolf who hit an RBI single in the second inning.
In game two, Kersch put up another solid performance from the mound. She pitched seven scoreless innings and the game was extended into extras knotted at zero. Unfortunately, the Knights were unable to hold off the Red Dragons.
Cortland hit a two-run homer in the top of the eighth and Geneseo did not respond in kind during the bottom of the inning. The result was a 2-0 loss and a split of the series with Cortland.
Geneseo will be home again on Saturday April 20 against SUNY Brockport.
Van Pelt explained a special event the team has planned for Saturday’s games.
“This Saturday is actually our little league day,” Van Pelt said. “We will be hosting local little league teams and signing autographs at the end of the game. Fans can expect lots of future softball studs at our games on Saturday.”
Every week the Knights are asked to note a teammate that deserves special recognition and, for a second time this season, senior captain Anna Merante was mentioned.
“She is out for the remainder of the season with a knee injury, but she still comes to all of our games and practices. Anna can be a prankster; she’s been known to bring props to help us get hyped every time we score a run. It really helps keep the energy up in the dugout. With a big smile and positive attitude, Anna is always there to support us,” Van Pelt said.
The Knights will look to carry that positive attitude into the later part of the season.