Morgan Douglas – Sports Editor
Owls’ softball defeated the University of New Haven Chargers in both games of a doubleheader this past Friday at Pelz Field.
Game one was a blowout, with the Owls winning 10-0. Game two featured another strong starting pitching performance in late game heroics which led to an exciting finish and a final score of 3-2.
“This shows that we don’t ever give up,” outfielder Liz DeRosa, a senior, said. “And that we also can put runs on the board against tough teams. UNH is a great team and we really played well today.”
DeRosa was a key player in both games on Friday and wound up with four runs batted in, two of which came on a home run in the fourth inning of game one.
“At first, I thought it was just a solid line drive to the wall and then everyone started cheering and I looked, and the girl was on top of the fence,” DeRosa said. “I was just thrilled.”
Pitcher Jessica Perucki, a junior, was dominant on the mound in game one, striking out seven Chargers over five innings before the game ended due to the mercy rule after DeRosa’s dinger to make the score 10-0.
For the season, Perucki has a 3.14 earned run average and has struck out 85 batters over 84.2 innings pitched.
In game two, Perucki’s counterpart, starting pitcher Jazmyn Martinez, a graduate student, looked to build on her equally impressive season.
“My changeup was really good today,” Martinez said. “My off-speed was what saved me. My curveball wasn’t the best, but I was working with what I had. The defense was great, they helped me out, the offense put runs on the board.”
The offense would take its time in scoring their runs, however, as the Chargers struck first, scoring a pair of runs off Martinez in the top of the second inning to take a 2-0 lead.
The Owls would get their first run across in the bottom of the third inning, when catcher Jacqueline Dumont, a senior, drove in outfielder Emily Lange, a sophomore, on a single to right field.
The bottom of the sixth was when the magic happened.
Still, a 2-1 game, the Owls had the heart of the order due up, and they delivered.
First baseman Jayden Delaporta, a graduate student, got the Owls off to a great start, with a leadoff double that hit off the third-base bag before going into left field to put the tying run in scoring position with nobody out.
Delaporta said, “The first couple of times I faced her (UNH pitcher Mia Iodice), I kind of was just like swinging and swinging, but I waited for my pitch in that at bat and was able to turn on it.”
Dumont popped up for the first out.
Infielder Madelyn Sauve, a freshman, delivered the game-tying hit with a base hit to left field to score Delaporta.
DeRosa was then able to get a ball into right field which was misplayed and both runners were able to advance safely, so the game was tied with runners on second and third.
Infielder Katrina Roy, a sophomore, delivered the key hit by simply hitting it back to the pitcher who could not make a play, Sauve scored, and the Owls took the 3-2 lead.
“We all just kind of had this energy that carried over from the first game,” Delaporta said. “And we knew that everyone just had to get up there and do a job and then Kat Roy came up huge and got that run in.”
Martinez finished the game off on the mound to earn the complete-game victory in the come-from-behind effort.
“It’s definitely a good feeling,” Martinez said. “My teammates kept me in the game, so it was just a solid win all-around.”
The Owls will look to improve upon their 13-15 record on Tuesday, April 19, when they play a doubleheader against Caldwell University at home.
