St. John's University Athletics
HOUGHTON LEADS RED STORM TO SWEEP OF ALBANY
4/10/2001 12:00:00 AM | Softball
The Red Storm capitalized on three Dane fielding errors in the second inning to assume a 2-0 lead. With two on and two out, sophomore Alesha Argeras lined a basehit to left field to plate Cecelia Baston and Jessica Dima. The Red Storm threatened to break the game wide open when Jessica Shepherd kept the inning alive by reaching on an error by the shortstop, but Lisa Tropea grounded out to short, stranding the two baserunners.
Albany knotted the game at 2-2 in the top of the fourth with a two-out rally of their own. Lynnette Bohannon ripped a two-out basehit to center. The cleanup hitter Chelsey LaRue hit a sharp line drive into right field which was fielded by Baston. She fired to third base, but the ball darted past Shepherd and into foul territory allowing Bohannon to score. The next batter Stephanie Strauss hit a ball on the ground to Shepherd at third, who over threw first baseman Michele Crokus, allowing another run to score, making it 2-2. Starting pitcher Gina Calabrese finally got Jessica Kostenblatt to fly out to centerfield to end the inning.
In the home half of the fourth, the Red Storm got those two runs back on a two-run double by Houghton into left-centerfield. With runners on second and third and two outs in the top of the seventh, Calabrese got Stacey Kowal to ground out to Shepherd at third to seal the victory, her 10th of the season. Calabrese struck out seven and walked just one while allowing thee hits and no earned runs.In the nightcap, Courtney Fitzgerald pitched a one-hit shutout over nine innings for her 11th victory of the season. Fitzgerald struck out eight and walked two while allowing only an infield single to Nikki Carella for her fourth shutout of the year and second in as many days. The Red Storm stranded nine baserunners in the contest but finally pushed one across in the bottom of the ninth.
Per international tie-breaking rules, Tiffany Howerton was placed at second base to start the inning. Then Houghton came through with the clutch basehit just beyond the reach of Valerie Terry at short to score Howerton and give the Red Storm their fourth extra-inning victory of the year. Houghton has now driven in a team-best 24 runs.
The Red Storm have won four in a row and seven of their last 10 and head into this weekend with great momentum. St. John's will continue with BIG EAST play on Saturday, April 14 when they take on Seton Hall (15-8, 5-3) in South Orange, N.J. The doubleheader is slated for noon.
