St. John's University Athletics
St. John's Softball Tripped Up at Worth Invitational
2/29/2008 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Feb. 29, 2008
Fullerton, Calif. - At the Titan Softball Complex in Fullerton, Calif., the Red Storm softball team fell in games versus UC Davis and No. 8/10 Stanford. Against the Aggies of UC Davis, St. John's was able to make a small comeback in the seventh but was downed 7-3. Versus a ranked Cardinal team, the Red Storm got down early but fought off the run-rule twice and scored the most runs against Stanford this season before falling 13-5.
"In game 1 we did not come out strong enough," said head Coach Amy Kvilhaug. "This team is still growing and has taken a lot of mental, physical, and mental lessons from today and this week. The resiliency is there. This team has shown time and again, that they have the ability to come back."
In the Red Storm's first game versus UC Davis, the Aggies bats were able to get to St. John's pitching, putting up six runs in the first four innings. St. John's was able to load the bases in the bottom of the first but could not come through with the timely hit it needed. The Red Storm did get on the board when freshman Kacee Cox scored on a wild pitch in the sixth. In the bottom of the seventh, St. John's got two more runs when junior Roxy Struble doubled to right center to score Lisa Geer and Chelsea Durning, but that was as close as the Red Storm could get.
Against No. 8/10 ranked Stanford, St. John's got down early giving up 6 runs to the red-hot Cardinal in the first inning. The Red Storm threatened in the bottom of the second, loading the bases, but could not cross any runs. Three more runs by the Cardinal in the top of fourth inning made the game 9-0.
Even though the team was down by 9 against one of the top ranked teams in the nation, the Red Storm refused to quit, loading the bases with no outs in the bottom of the fourth. Back-to-back sacrifice flies by Danielle Estrada and Lisa Geer put St. John's on the board.
When the team faced the run-rule in the bottom of the fifth, sophomore Shauntaine Harris came through with a clutch double and scored a batter later when Durning also doubled to keep the Red Storm alive. St. John's was confronted by the same situation in the bottom of the sixth, trailing 11-3. Geer came through this time with one out, singling to left which allowed Alyson Funn to score from second after an error by the left fielder. Senior Bionka King was the next player to step up, hitting a shot through the right side, scoring pinch-runner Melissa Pilley and cutting the Stanford lead to 11-5. This was as close as the Red Storm would get, falling in seven innings, 13-5.
On the day, Struble went 3-for-7 with 2 doubles and 2 RBI while freshman pitcher Linzee Sumrall struck out 6 in just 3.2 innings.
The Red Storm softball squad will now travel to Northridge, Calif. to take on the Cal State Northridge Matadors in a double-header starting at 12:30 p.m. (P.T.). These will be the final two games of St. John's 12-game California road trip. The Red Storm's home opener is scheduled for March 5 vs. Yale at 2:30 p.m.