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HAMILTON, N.Y. (4/21/2010) – Jennifer Ortega (Aberdeen, N.J.) tallied her first multi-homer game of her young career, but it wasn't enough as visiting Binghamton downed Colgate 8-5 in the first game of a non-conference softball doubleheader, Wednesday afternoon at Eaton Street Field. The Bearcats completed the sweep with an 8-1 victory in the nightcap.
Ortega plated all five of the Raiders' runs in the opener with two swings of the bat. Down 2-0 heading into the bottom of the first, the sophomore belted her sixth round tripper of the year to left center to plate Alana Dyson (Grovetown, Ga.) from second.
With the Bearcats leading 7-2, Colgate rallied a bit in the bottom of the fifth. With one out, Melissa Babb-Renta (Glenview, Ill.) reached on an error. The senior moved to second on a single through the left side by Dyson. After a pitching change, Ortega greeted reliever Kate Price by ripping a three-run shot to deep center to cut the deficit to 7-5. The five-RBI performance bested her former career-high of four set last season versus Bucknell. With her two homers, she moved into fifth on Colgate's all-time list (14).
Dyson led the nine-hit attack with three hits, while Ortega and Stephanie Hartquist (Homer, N.Y.) each collected a pair of hits. Hartquist's single to left center in the third stretched her hitting streak to 24 games.
The Bearcats, who improved to 21-12 overall, scored at least one run in every inning with exception of the seventh. Binghamton posted four homers in the victory. Deannie Plemon tallied four hits, including belting her 11th homer of the year, a two-run shot in the third. Stephanie Valencia, Stephanie DeLuca and Chelsea Horne each homered as well.
Rhoda Marsteller improved to 9-6 overall after giving up five hits and three earned runs in 4.1 innings of work. Courtney O'Connell (Palm Harbor, Fla.) suffered the loss after allowing 14 hits and seven earned runs in seven innings.
Jessica Phillips drove in three runs, while Valencia knocked in two more for Binghamton in the second game. Phillips led off the night cap with a solo shot to left field off Colgate starter Lacy Ver Steeg (Elk Grove, Calif.). She returned later to record a two-run homer in the bottom of the fourth.
Down 1-0, the Raiders knotted the game at 1-1 with an unearned run in the bottom of the first. Babb-Renta opened the inning reaching first on catcher interference. After Dyson singled, Ortega followed with a single. An error on the play allowed Babb-Renta to score from second. Valencia gave the Bearcats the lead for good with a two-run single down the leftfield line in the bottom of the second.
Ortega tallied the lone multi-hit game with a two-hit performance. Hartquist's bid to stretch her streak to 25 games ended in a 0 for 2 outing. The sophomore walked in her final at bats in the fifth inning. The game was called after the sixth on the count of darkness.
Kristen Emerling surrendered five hits and an unearned run to improve to 12-2 for Binghamton, while Ver Steeg dropped to 0-3.
Colgate, now 21-17 overall, returns to action Saturday as it hosts an important Patriot League four-game series versus Army. The doubleheader versus the Black Knights starts at noon.
