Offensive Battle Leads To Doubleheader Split With Butler

Tuesday, April 1

Queens, N.Y.

1:00 PM

St. John's University

Butler

Francesca Carrullo has a 5-0 record with a 0.51 ERA in conference play this year.

Offensive Battle Leads To Doubleheader Split With Butler

4/1/2014 12:00:00 AM | Softball

Final Stats

April 1, 2014

QUEENS, N.Y. - After a tough 4-2 loss to Butler in the opening game of the series on Tuesday, the St. John's offense responded immediately back as it combined for 13 hits to take a 7-5 victory over the Bulldogs in Game Two, forcing a doubleheader split with its new conference foe.

Senior Jackie Reed led the way for the Red Storm, finishing the doubleheader 4-for-6 with a home run, a double, a pair of walks and a team-leading four RBI.

After stranding a pair of runners on in each of the first two innings, St. John's turned things around with a one-out home run over the right-center wall by Reed, putting the Red Storm ahead, 1-0, early on in Game One.

Butler would respond right back in the top of the fifth, however, as Krista Hakola sent a leadoff double down the right-field line to build momentum up for the Bulldogs. After a sacrifice bunt to move Hakola to third, Krosley Ogden beat out an infield single to second to score Hakola and knot the game up, 1-1.

The hard-hitting bats of the Red Storm came right back in the bottom half of the frame though as Erin Burner ripped a full-count pitch deep over the left-center wall to put St. John's back on top, 2-1, heading into the sixth.

Trailing by a run in the top of the seventh, Butler's Kristen Boros and Hakola paired up for back-to-back doubles into the gaps, tying the game up to force St. John's to the bullpen. With Francesca Carrullo in the circle, the Bulldogs added on another pair of runs on a pair of hits before the junior right-hander was able to end the inning and send the Red Storm to the plate for its final at bats trailing 4-2.

Aside from a one-out single by Ellen Czuba in the bottom of the seventh, Kristen Gutierrez (7-8) was able to close things out and pick up the complete-game victory, striking out 10 St. John's batters along the way. Tori Free (6-10) took the loss after six innings of work, allowing three runs while striking out three along the way.

The momentum from the Butler offense carried over into game two as Ogden led off the game with a two-strike single up the middle before Alex Kotter sent a 1-1 pitch over the left-center fence, giving Butler an early 2-0 lead.

After senior Ashley Beza was able to sit down the Butler offense in order, including a pair of strikeouts, the bats came alive in the bottom half of the second as the Red Storm posted up four runs on five hits and a Butler error to take back the lead.

The offensive inning all started as Yvonne Rericha led things off with a base hit down the left field line to get things going for St. John's. After Rericha was called for leaving early on a steal for the first out, Kelsey Moyer and Carly Williams responded right back for the Red Storm, combining for back-to-back singles before Lexi Robles was able to drive in a run on a base hit up the middle.

With Aleshia Link in to pinch-run, Czuba was able to take advantage of a Butler error to load the bases while Reed stepped into the box and a base-clearing double into right, giving St. John's a 4-2 lead into the third.

The offensive momentum would continue into the top of the third as Kotter sent her second home run of the game over the wall, ripping a three-run blast over the right-center fence to put Butler back in front, 5-4.

The Red Storm held its composure heading into the bottom half of the frame, however, as Monique Landini got things started with a leadoff double before moving to third on a sacrifice bunt by Rericha.

After an infield single by Moyer to put runners on the corners, Williams answered with a one-out double into the right-center gap, scoring both Landini and Moyer for the eventual game-winning hit as the Red Storm would go on to win, 7-5, to force the doubleheader split.

Carrullo (3-1) earned the win after pitching 4.2 innings of shutout relief, allowing only two hits without giving up a walk.

The Red Storm will look to pick up the series victory on Wednesday, April 2, as it hosts Butler in the rubber match of the three-game series with first pitch scheduled for noon. The game will be broadcasted live on the RedStormSports.com All-Access channel (subscription required).

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".