ORANGEBURG, S.C. (March 7, 2022) - Facing another 2-1 deficit going into the seventh inning for the second consecutive game, the Saint Peter's softball team had an offensive explosion for a seven-run inning to win game one 8-2 and dominated from first pitch in game two for an 11-0 victory over South Carolina State Monday at Bulldog Softball Complex.
The Peacocks have now won three straight games for the second time this season. It is the first time since 2006 SPU has had multiple win streaks of at least three-games in a single season.Â
It is also the fastest the Peacocks have reached the seven win total in a season since starting the 2006 season 7-2.
Top Performers
- Coming on in relief in the second inning of game one, freshman Nicole Antuna was stellar in the circle picking up her first career win after allowing just one run on six hits across 6.0 innings with four strikeouts.
- Junior Cara McNulty put on a hitting clinic in the doubleheader as she finished the day 5 for 6 with a double and two RBI.
- Sophomore Maiah Skakal finished game one with a multi-hit effort going 2 for 4 with two RBI and a run scored.
- Sophomore Kaitlynn Peters recorded her first hit, RBI and run scored in the second game of the day coming off the bench.
- Junior Aubrey Ketcham was a machine in game two going 3 for 3 with a double, a triple and five RBI in the victory.
- Christina Colon and Taylor Rondon combined to toss 5.0 scoreless innings in game two to pick up the combined shutout.
- Brandi Feeney had a multi-RBI effort in game two with three runs driven in while also scoring a pair.
How It Happened (Game One)
- The Bulldogs struck first in the opening game of the day with a run in the bottom of the first thanks to a walk, a single and an RBI groundout.
- SPU quickly answered with a run of their own in the top of the second after McNulty led things off with a double, moved to third on a single from Brandi Feeney and scored on a two-out RBI single from Lexi Ross.
- In the bottom of the second, a wild sequence gave SCSU the lead. With runners at second and third and one out, the Peacocks cut off a runner trying to score at the plate to keep the game tied at 1-1.
- The tie was only momentary, however, as the next batter stepped up and singled to bring home a run and make the score 2-1.
- The deficit remained 2-1 for the next five innings and the Peacocks found themselves trailing 2-1 heading into the seventh for the second consecutive contest.
- Much like they did Sunday against Presbyterian, SPU battled and took the lead in the seventh.Â
- After a leadoff single from McNulty, a Bulldog error and a single from Anja Solveig Kane loaded the bases, Samantha Miller brought home the second run of the game on an RBI fielder's choice to knot things up at 2-2.
- The Peacocks would go on to take the lead one batter later on an RBI sacrifice fly by Courtney Fraher and tacked on another thanks to an RBI single off the bat of Olyvia Smith.
- After a strikeout gave SCSU the second out of the inning, SPU broke the game open when Skakal laced a two-RBI triple to clear the bases and later came home on an RBI double from Dakota Pitts to make the score 7-2.
- Pitts would later swipe third and come home on a passed ball to give the Peacocks a six-run cushion with just one half-inning to play.
- Antuna would make sure the six-run edge held up, allowing just a single hit in the bottom of the seventh to seal the win.
How It Happened (Game Two)
- The Peacock offense continued its torrid pace from the end of the first contest into the second with a six-run first inning.
- Smith started things off with a leadoff triple and came home one batter later on an RBI single from Katie Sciglimpaglia.
- With two outs, Sciglimpaglia at third and Pitts at first, SPU was able to tack on a pair of runs on an error to make the score 3-0.
- After another error allowed Kane to reach and Kourtney Ketcham walked to load the bases, A. Ketcham stepped to the plate and unloaded on a bases-clearing RBI triple to give the Peacocks a 6-0 advantage.
- SPU added a run in the second on an RBI single from Cara McNulty to bring home Miller.
- Still leading 7-0 heading into the fourth, the Peacocks ensured the game would not last more than five innings with four more runs to enforce the run rule.
- Sciglimpaglia led things off with a double and Miller followed it up with a single to put runners at the corners with nobody out.
- Peters then stepped to the plate and delivered her first collegiate hit and RBI with a single to bring home Sciglimpaglia.
- Feeney brought home another to make it 9-0 with an RBI single and A. Ketcham brought home two more on an RBI double to push the lead to 11-0.
- The lead was plenty for Colon and Rondon as the duo combined for the five-inning shutout.
Inside the Numbers
- The run-rule victory in game two is the first for the Peacocks since beating Coppin State 9-1 in five innings on March 11, 2020.
- SPU is now 7-3 in its last 10 games after starting the year 0-2.
- After a stellar day at the plate, Aubrey Ketcham is now the team's leading hitter, batting .368 with an impressive 1.026 OPS. She also leads the team with a .526 slugging percentage and is tied for second with five RBI.
- McNulty (.343), Skakal (.333) and Smith (.333) all join Ketcham hitting above .300 this season.
- Colon's ERA is now below 2.00 at 1.94 as she has allowed just six earned runs across 21.2 innings in the circle.
- The Peacocks banged out 10 hits in game one and 13 in game two to mark the first two times this season SPU had double-digit hits in a game.
- Coming into the contest, the Peacocks had not recorded a single triple in a game. They now have three after the doubleheader sweep.
From the Dugout (Head Coach Chris Stelma)
- "It was great to get out on a nice day and have so many people contribute. Nicole Antuna had a huge day for her first win and Kaitlynn Peter's had her first career hit, run and RBI. Sam Miller also had a huge hit in game one in a big spot as well."
Next Up
- The four-game set concludes Tuesday as SPU will take on South Carolina State in a doubleheader starting at 12:00 p.m.
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