St. John’s Falls in Game One of Series to Butler, 2-1

Friday, March 21

Indianapolis, Ind. (Softball Field)

3 p.m.

St. John's University

21-9-1, 3-1

Butler

17-8, 6-1

St. John's

Butler

St. John’s Falls in Game One of Series to Butler, 2-1

3/21/2025 6:08:00 PM | Softball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

Serafinko struck out 15 batters in the contest

By: Josh McLaren

INDIANAPOLIS – The St. John's softball team (21-9-1, 3-1) fell to Butler in the opening contest of a three-game series on Friday afternoon in Indianapolis.

Ana Serafinko was brilliant inside the circle, racking up 15 punchouts while allowing just two earned runs on nine hits and a walk. The left-hander now has 147 strikeouts and a 2.28 ERA in 89 innings pitched this season.

On offense, Elanna Lysiak led the charge with a pair of hits, raising her batting average to .333. Freshman Madison Konopka notched the third double of her career and extended her hitting streak to five games. Natalie Casto delivered the game-tying hit in the top of the seventh with an RBI single back up the middle.

After a scoreless top of the first, Butler (17-8, 6-1) threatened with Cate Lehner recording an infield single before swiping second and third to put a runner in scoring position. Serafinko remained poised inside the circle, striking out the next three batters to keep the game scoreless, 0-0.

Lysiak notched the first St. John's hit with a single up the middle to lead off the top of the second, but Bulldogs' starter Gwen Baker recorded three consecutive outs to leave the frame unscathed, 0-0.

Serafinko once again punched out the side in the bottom of the second, working around a two-out walk and single to keep the game scoreless after two innings of play.

Both Baker and Serafinko tossed a blank half-inning in the third before the Johnnies produced its best scoring opportunity so far in the top of the fourth, with Lysiak and Cassidy Stouffer stringing together a pair of two-out singles. However, Baker generated a groundout to tally the third out, 0-0.

In the bottom of the fourth, Serafinko sat the Bulldogs down 1-2-3, picking up her eighth and ninth strikeout of the contest to keep the scoreboard blank.

With two outs in the top of the fifth, Konopka lined a double into the left-center gap, marking the first extra-base hit for either team. Jess Bianco then drew a walk, putting two on, but Baker got out of the jam, striking out the final out, 0-0.

Serafinko kept it rolling inside the circle, working around a lead-off single in the bottom of the fifth by tallying the next three outs including her 10^th punchout, 0-0.

The Bulldogs cracked the run column an inning later on a Makena Alexander solo home run down the right-field line, 1-0.

In St. John's last chance on offense, Serafinko led off the top of the seventh by reaching on an error. Paige Sterling then entered as a pinch runner before Melanie Santos successfully bunted her over to second. Casto then delivered the game-tying hit with a single back up the middle to plate Sterling, 1-1.

Butler responded back in the bottom of the seventh after Lehner initiated a two-out rally with a single before swiping second. Hailey Conger then drove a walk-off RBI single into right-center to give the Bulldogs a 2-1 victory in game one of the series.

St. John's and Butler will wrap up the three-game set with a doubleheader tomorrow due to forecasted inclement weather on Sunday. The first game is scheduled for a 1 p.m. start with the latter contest at approximately 3 p.m.