St. John's University Athletics
St. John's University
UAB
Red Storm Blanked By Nationally Recognized Opponents
2/28/2014 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Final Stats | #SJUSB At The Sixth Annual Bulldog Invitational 
Feb. 28, 2014
- BOX SCORE: St. John's vs. UAB
- BOX SCORE: St. John's vs. No. 17/18 Georgia
- Season Stats
- Join The St. John's Softball Mailing List
- Donate To The Softball Indoor Batting Facility
- Follow St. John's Softball on Twitter
ATHENS, Ga. - Facing the start of its toughest tournament of the season, the St. John's softball team (4-7) was unable to manufacture a run as it was shutout in back-to-back games to kick off the Sixth Annual Bulldog Invitational on Friday.
Despite a strong outing by sophomore Tori Free (3-4) in game one, who pitched a complete game with eight strikeouts, the Red Storm was unable to plate a run in the weekend opener as it fell to formerly nationally-ranked UAB, 3-0, on Friday afternoon.
The St. John's defense held strong throughout the majority of the game, allowing only four hits over the first five innings while stranding eight runners during that time, including a bases-loaded jam in the fourth.
The Blazers earned their first two runs on an illegal pitch and a wild pitch, respectively, and did not record a RBI until the sixth inning when they added their third and final run to take the 3-0 victory.
Only three Red Storm batters were able to pick up hits in the first game as Erin Burner and Kaitlin Fitzgerald each finished the game 2-for-3, while Robles picked up a hit in the third inning after working a walk earlier in the first.
The run-scoring drought continued into its second game as the Red Storm was unable to plate a run against No. 17/18 Georgia, falling 8-0 in five-innings to the host-Bulldogs. Ellen Czuba and Brittany Garcia were the only two Red Storm batters to record a hit, while Jackie Reed snapped a 13-game reached-base streak as she was unable to make it to first against the Bulldogs.
Freshman Grace Kramer (0-1) took the loss after allowing six runs on four hits through 2.2 innings of work, striking out a pair.
The Red Storm returns to action on Saturday when it takes on Georgia at 12:30 p.m. and Western Carolina at 5:30 p.m.
After the conclusion of the Bulldog Invitational, the Red Storm heads straight to Clearwater, Fla., for spring break where it will play against the three-time (2009, 2011, 2013) European Champion Dutch National Team in an exhibition game (March 5) before heading to the USF-Under Armour Invitational on March 7-9.
For all the latest news on the St. John's softball team, log on to RedStormSports.com and follow the team (@StJohnsSoftball) on Twitter. You can join the conversation with #SJUSB. If you would like to be added to the St. John's softball mailing list, send an email to stjcommunications@stjohns.edu with the subject line "Softball Mailing List".
