Madison Morris Shines Again as St. John's Splits Day Two

Saturday, February 16

Columbia, S.C.

1:30 p.m.

St. John's University

3-4

UNC Greensboro

4-5

St. John's

UNCG

Madison Morris Shines Again as St. John's Splits Day Two

2/17/2019 12:15:00 AM | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2 Box Score vs. UNCG Box Score vs. Campbell

The senior hurler strikes out 11 in win over Campbell at the Gamecock Invitational

COLUMBIA, S.C. (Feb. 17, 2019) – Another dominant performance by senior Madison Morris against Campbell helped the St. John's softball team split its second day at the Gamecock Invitational on Saturday.

Game 1
            The Red Storm dropped its opening game on day two, 8-4, against UNC Greensboro.

            St. John's third baseman Gretchen Bowie sparked the Johnnies' offense when she smashed her second home run in as many games, giving the Red Storm a 1-0 advantage. The Sparta, N.J., native successfully reached base for the sixth-straight game with her round-tripper. In the bottom half, Angela Saric worked out of trouble, forcing UNCG's Stephanie Bryden to ground into a double play.

            After a scoreless second frame for the Johnnies, the Spartans (4-5) took a 3-1 lead on an RBI single by Jasmine Palmer and a Makenna Matthijs two-run single.

            Rookie Meisha Murray continued her hot start by extending her hitting streak to five with a lead-off double in the top of the third. St. John's threatened with the freshman's early hit, but Bryden and the Spartans' defense shut down the Red Storm.

            UNC Greensboro's Jordan Gontram tagged the Johnnies with another run, 4-1, on an RBI double to right field in the bottom of the third frame.

            Marissa Rizzi countered with a solo home run on the first pitch of the fourth inning to cut the UNCG's lead to 4-2. The Red Storm continued to pressure UNC Greensboro as Kaitlin Mattera was hit by a pitch, followed by a Laura Delgado single to the left side. However, the Spartans' ace Bryden stopped the Johnnies in their tracks before any more runs crossed the plate.

            UNCG and St. John's exchanged a scoreless fourth inning before the Spartans posted four runs in the fifth, expanding its lead to six, 8-2.

            The Red Storm's best opportunity of the game came when the Johnnies loaded the bases with no outs in the top of the sixth. Mattera walked, forcing Rizzi to score and cutting St. John's deficit to five, 8-3. Two batters later, freshman Peyton Cody delivered her fourth pinch-hit RBI of the weekend on a sacrifice fly to left, scoring Gabby Conca from third and trimming the Spartans' lead to 8-4.

            Despite its loss, the Red Storm outscored and outhit the Spartans, 10-8 and 15-14, respectively, in its two matchups in South Carolina. St. John's moves to 5-7 in its all-time series against UNC Greensboro.

GAME 2
            Madison Morris shined in the nightcap as St. John's defeated Campbell, 4-3, in the final game of the evening.

            The Hampton, Va., native recorded seven swinging strikeouts through the first nine batters of the game. She would go on to add four more punch outs in her third complete game victory of the season. In the right hander's last four games, Morris has posted a 3-0 record and has fanned 33 batters through 28 innings of work.

            "Another strong outing by Maddy supported again by timely hitting," Head Coach Bob Guerriero said. "One-run games make or break a season and we've done well in those games so far."

            Along with Morris, Peyton Cody has been called on in big situations this weekend and she has not disappointed. After whacking a pinch-hit, three-run triple to right-center against UNC Greensboro on Friday, the Mission Viejo, Calif., native received the starting nod against Campbell and launched her first career home run over the center field fence.

            Murray, much like her rookie counterpart, has made an impact by registering a hit in each of her six starts this season. She has also scored three runs and swiped two bases.

            St. John's (4-4), the home team against Campbell (1-6), tallied the first run of the game on an RBI double by Christina Melendez in the opening frame. The senior right fielder lined her two-base hit to the left field wall, scoring Marissa Rizzi from first and giving the Red Storm a 1-0 lead.

            After Morris fanned three Fighting Camels in the top of the second, Cody gave the Johnnies a 2-0 advantage on her solo home run in the bottom frame. Three batters later, St. John's tacked on another run, 3-0, when Natalie Giroux crossed the plate on a Gretchen Bowie sacrifice fly to right.

            Following the two-run second inning, Giroux hit a two-out, RBI single up the middle, extending the Johnnies lead to 4-0 after three frames.

            Morris ran into trouble in the top of the fourth when Campbell's Megan Mozingo launched a three-run home run to right field, cutting the Fighting Camels' deficit to one, 4-3.

            Rookie center fielder Murray recorded her lone hit of the game in the fourth by slapping a double to the right-center gap. The Santa Clarita, Calif., native nearly scored the Johnnies fifth run of the game, but the officials called Murray out at third for tagging up early on Rizzi's fly out to right field.

            Both teams were held scoreless through the final three innings. However, Campbell threatened the Red Storm's lead in the top of the seventh. Pinch-hitter Morgan Rios lined a double to center field, putting the tying run on base and the leading run at the plate. Morris kept her composure, striking out Claudia Ware and forcing Hannah Jones to pop up to second base, ending the game, 4-3.

            With their victory today, the Johnnies have won the last two meetings with the Fighting Camels after losing the first four matchups.

            St. John's closes out the Gamecock Invitational against the host school, No. 14/14 South Carolina, with first pitch set for 12:30 p.m.