BINGHAMTON, N.Y. – Colgate Softball pounded 16 hits and scored 18 combined runs in a doubleheader sweep of Niagara, taking the opener 11-2 before securing the nightcap, 7-1.
Lily Haluska, Mia Cascio, and Marina Taveras led Colgate's hot hitting with three knocks apiece. Taveras homered, drove in five runs, and scored three times to pace the production. Tealla Rivera also homered and finished with two hits alongside Kayla Martin.
Defensively, Maya Servedio and Alexa Acker combined for two wins, two earned runs, and 10 strikeouts in 12 innings of work in the circle. Kelcie McGraw tossed two innings of relief, holding down the nightcap to complete the doubleheader sweep.
COACH LAMISON-MYERS' COMMENTS
"It was great to get back into the win column. It was a total team effort. Even when things got a bit tough we stuck to our plan and executed. I can't say enough about our offense. They made it easy on the pitchers, but gave us a ton of run support."
Game 1 | Colgate 11, Niagara 2 (5)
Colgate tallied nine hits and drew eight walks to power past Niagara, 11-2, in five innings. The Raiders scored 11 unanswered runs after Niagara plated a pair in the top of the first.
Nora Megenity and Analisa Raffaelli opened the first with walks before RBI knocks from Taveras and Haluska tied the game at 2-2. Colgate took the lead in the third when Martin delivered a two-run double and Megenity followed with an RBI single to make it 5-2.
The Raiders broke the game open with six runs in the fourth. Three straight bases-loaded singles from Cascio, Rivera, and Martin drove in runs, while RBIs from Izzy Ervin-Agudelo, Mackenzie Lewis, and Raffaelli pushed the lead to 11-2.
Servedio tossed a complete game, allowing five hits and two runs over five innings with three strikeouts and no walks. She shut the door by inducing three straight lineouts in the top of the fifth to secure the run-rule victory.
Haluska, Cascio, and Martin each finished with two hits and two runs scored. Martin drove in three to lead the Raiders offensively.
Game 2 | Colgate 7, Niagara 1
Colgate used two home runs and a five-run sixth inning to defeat Niagara, 7-1, in the nightcap.
The Raiders broke through in the fifth when Taveras launched a two-run inside-the-park home run down the right field line, scoring Raffaelli for a 2-0 lead.
Niagara answered with a solo home run in the sixth to cut the deficit to one, but Colgate responded immediately.
Rivera led off the bottom of the inning with a solo blast to left, and Taveras later added a bases-clearing single that turned into three runs on a throwing error. Taveras later scored on a passed ball to cap the five-run frame and extend the lead to 7-1.
Acker struck out seven over five innings, allowing three hits and no earned runs. Kelcie McGraw pitched the final two innings in relief.
Taveras finished with a home run, four RBIs, and two runs scored, while Rivera added a solo homer. Raffaelli reached base three times on walks and scored once.
UP NEXT
Colgate (9-14) will next face Maryland Eastern Shore next Tuesday for a doubleheader starting at 1 p.m. in Princess Anne, Md.
