FORT MYERS, FL – Saint Joseph's College (5-3) swept both games for the second consecutive day and the Monks are currently on a five-game winning streak. The Royal Blue routed MCLA in game one, 11-2, and shutout Ohio Wesleyan, 1-0 in the team's final Florida contest.
GAME ONE
St. Joe's scored in every inning in the five inning triumph over MCLA (being the home team, St. Joe's only batted for four innings). The Monks put up only one run in the first, but then scored three in the second, three in the third, and four in the fourth en route to the 11-2 shellacking.
Freshman pitcher Laura Jordan (Orrington, Maine) got the start for St. Joe's and went four innings, earning the win (1-0). Jordan allowed just two earned runs on two hits; she walked five and struck out three.
Freshman Sam Barbarotta got the nod for the Trailblazers and went the distance. Barbarotta allowed just six hits but she walked fourteen which led to eleven runs (nine earned).
MCLA held a 2-1 lead going into the bottom of the second when freshman third baseman Kim Jordan (Bangor, Maine) led off with a walk. Sophomore left fielder Theresa Hendrix (Scarborough, Maine), who went 0-0 with three walks on the day, worked a free pass and then Hendrix and Jordan pulled off a double steal to put runners on second and third with no outs. Senior catcher Maria Labbe (Lewiston, Maine) followed with another walk and all three runners moved up one base on a wild pitch. The next batter, Maddie Kluna (Standish, Maine), reached on an error by the right fielder which scored Hendrix and Labbe. The three-run inning put the Monks up 4-2 and they never looked back.
Kluna starred at the plate for the Monks with a pair of hits and five runs batted in. Labbe chipped in with two runs scored and three RBI.
The Trailblazers were led offensively by Kaitland Hager who had a base-knock along with one run scored and one run batted in.
GAME TWO
The game between St. Joe's and Ohio Wesleyan was tight right down to the end. A scoreless tie after four innings, the Monks put up a single run in the top of the fifth to go up 1-0. That score would remain up to the bottom of the seventh as Ohio Wesleyan refused to go down without a fight. With one out in the final frame, Tamra Londot, singled and advanced to second on a passed ball, then third on a wild pitch. Brooke Nethers followed up with a walk, forcing Head Coach Jamie Smyth '92 to bring in Hendrix to put out the fire. Put out the fire she did, striking out the only two batters she faced to earn her second save in as many days.
Junior right-hander Kayla Vannah (Waldoboro, Maine) started for St. Joe's and lasted six and one-third innings to notch the win (2-0). Vannah walked four, struck out four, and scattered five hits in the effort.
The Battling Bishops sent Stefanie Rieder to the hill and she gave a valiant effort in the loss. Going all seven innings, Rieder allowed just one earned run on three hits. She struck out four while only walking two.
The Monks scored their lone run with two outs in the top of the fifth. Labbe laced a single into center field to score sophomore shortstop Lindsay Moore (Barrington, N.H.) and that would be all the scoring Vannah and the Monks would need for their 1-0 thriller over Ohio Wesleyan.
The Monks won't return to action until Tuesday, March 20, as they travel back up north to Lasell College (0-10) for a doubleheader beginning at 3 p.m.
