The Oswego State softball team had a two-day, four-game stretch from April 15-16. The Lakers were able to split their doubleheaders against the two teams they faced.

The Lakers kicked off this stretch against their SUNYAC rival, the SUNY Geneseo Knights. The first game was a bad day for hitters, but a great day for the pitchers as the game went into extra innings.

This game already looked to be out of reach for the Lakers, as with no outs in the top of the first, the Knights had a player on both second and third. Fiona Higgins was able to strike out a player following this, but a ground out soon followed that allowed a runner to score to make it a 1-0 ball game. Higgins struckout the next batter to let the Lakers come up and hit.

Mattison Phinney was the only player on the Lakers to get a hit in the first. This was a theme until the bottom of the third as the second inning and top of the third provided the fans with no hits.

Kira Wright kicked off the third with a single dead center, and she stole second following this. Grace DiPalma hit a ground out that brought Wright to third, but the Lakers were backed against a wall when Mackenzie Carlson got out. However, after an error by the shortstop on the Knights, Wright was brought in to make it a 1-1 game.

The top of the fourth provided plenty of drama, as the Knights quickly had the bases loaded with one out. The next batter hit the ball directly left, and Lily Fanea made a quick play to make it two outs at home base. The next batter hit a fly out and the Lakers could take a breath.

The next two and a half innings had a combined two hits, as neither team could get offense going, so the game headed to an extra eighth inning. Higgins helped the Lakers immensely, as she had two Ks in the eighth to put the game in the Lakers’ hands. DiPalma kicked off the eighth with a single down the right field line and reached second on a steal. After a strikeout from Carlson and a Phinney walk, Fanea blasted a ball to right field. This hit brought DiPalma in, and the Lakers went on to win 2-1.

The next game was not pretty for the Lakers, as the Knights rocketed 13 runs in five innings to mercy rule the Lakers 13-0.

The next matchup for the Lakers was against the SUNY Brockport Bears and the game did not have much action until the bottom of the fourth.

The first four and a half innings were slow, as the Bears and Lakers combined for just four hits. However, in the bottom of the fourth Fanea kicked it off with a single right down the center. Higgins was the next batter up and she walked; Ellie Mahoney followed this up by striking out. While Mahoney was at bat, both Higgins and Fanea were able to steal their respective bases, as the Lakers had a woman on second and third with only one out. Tahlia Girardi walked after this and all three players advanced on a wild pitch, giving the Lakers a 1-0 lead. Jenna Mills pinch-hit for Haggerty and advanced on an error by the second baseman from the Bears. Wright blasted an RBI double to left field following this, and DiPalma copied her but to right field. The Lakers were up 5-0, and then DiPalma scored on a wild pitch leaving the fourth inning up 6-0.

The Lakers scored two more runs in the fifth inning, dominating the Bears 8-0 in the first game. 

The Lakers quickly went up in the second game off two singles by Phinney and DiPalma, as they were up 1-0 in the bottom of the first. However, the Bears scored four runs over the course of the third and fourth inning, and three in the sixth to beat the Lakers 7-3.

The Lakers had a doubleheader scheduled against St. John Fisher for April 17 but was postponed due to the weather. The Lakers will move on to face the SUNY Buffalo Bengals on April 19 in a doubleheader.

Photo by: Oswego Athletics