POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. - A week after the Marist softball team saw its offense combine for 25 hits in a doubleheader sweep of Hartford, the Red Foxes didn't miss a beat on Wednesday after in a home twinbill sweep of Columbia. On the strength of a combined 21 hits and four home runs, including a Game One walk-off by junior Danielle Koltz (Chenango Bridge, N.Y.) the team earned 5-4 and 6-5 victories over the visiting Lions.
GAME 1, MARIST 5 - COLUMBIA 4: After finding themselves in an early 3-0 deficit after the top of the third inning, the Red Foxes broke through onto the scoreboard in the bottom of the frame with three runs of their own. Senior Ashley Corriss (Sayville, N.Y.) led off the inning with a home run out over the left-center field wall. This was her first homer of 2012 and the second of her career.
Following a single by senior Megan Lamoureux (Woonsocket, R.I.) and a double by Koltz, the duo were driven in consecutive at bats by sophomore Alyssa Zahka (Lexington, Mass.) and Haley Birnbaum (Lido Beach, N.Y.) to tie the game at three.
Columbia retook the lead in the fifth with a single run.
The game was re-tied in the bottom of the sixth inning by junior Sarah Carmody (Camarillo, Calif.), who joined Corriss in collecting her first home run of the season.
The Red Foxes earned the Game One victory in its final at bat. With one out in the bottom of the seventh, Koltz lined the first pitch she saw from Brooke Darling out over the left-center for the exciting 5-4 walk-off win.
For the game, Marist outhit Columbia 11 to 10 and had three players with multiple hits. Lamoureux, who registered her 100th career hit in the bottom of the first inning led the team with three hits. Koltz finished two-for-four with a double and home run.
In the circle, freshman Janine Lalli (Eastchester, N.Y.) started and went five innings before being relieved by junior Emily Osterhaus (Suwanee, Ga.), who earned the win with two scoreless innings of relief.
GAME 2, MARIST 6 - COLUMBIA 5: Similar to Game One, the Lions jumped out to an early lead with three runs unanswered runs in the first three innings. After a dominate stretch of pitching by freshman Melanie White (Highlands Ranch, Colo.) in which she struck out four consecutive batters, including all three batters in the fourth inning, the offense awoke in the bottom of the frame.
Koltz led off the four run inning with a base hit to left field. Two batters later, Birnbaum drove in both Koltz and Alyssa Zahka, who reached via an error, with a double down the left field line. The sophomore second baseman crossed home plate two batters later when Carmody hit an RBI single. The fourth and final run of the inning come after Lamoureux drew a four pitch walk.
The team extended its 4-3 lead with a pair of runs in its next offense frame. These two runs came about much quicker as sophomore Aly Klemmer (Hamilton, N.J.) smashed a two-run home run deep over the left-center field fence.
Up 6-3 going into the seventh, the Red Foxes held off a late Columbia charge, that saw the visitors plate two runs. Relief pitcher Paige Lewis (Temecula, Calif.) retired the final three batters with ground balls to earn the save of the 6-5 game.
For the contest, Marist was outhit by Columbia 11 to 10. Nine Red Foxes collected hits with Birnbaum the only hitter with two base knocks. In the circle, White went six innings with a career-high eight strikeouts to improve her 2012 record to 3-6.
For the doubleheader, the Red Foxes hit .396 (21-53) with eight extra-base hits and four home runs. Their four pitchers combined for 13 strikeouts in 14 innings.
Marist will begin MAAC play this weekend when it travels to Fairfield on Saturday, April 7 for a twinbill that will begin at 1 p.m.
