Canisius College freshman pitcher Amanda Baun tossed a one-hit,
complete-game shutout and teammates Katie
Lancellotti and Emily Helbig
each drove in two runs as the Golden Griffins defeated Niagara 4-0 Friday
afternoon in a MAAC Softball Championship Tournament elimination game at the
Demske Sports Complex. Canisius (34-18) will take on Iona at 12 p.m., on
Saturday at the Demske Sports Complex and will need to beat the second-seeded
Gaels two times to earn the MAAC's automatic bid into the NCAA Division I
Softball Tournament. The Purple Eagles see their season end at 22-22.
Baun earned her team-leading 18th
win of the season in the circle after she struck out nine and gave up just one
hit, which came with two outs in the top of the seventh. The Riverside, Calif.,
native fanned eight of the first 11 batters she faced through three innings and
was in line to throw her first collegiate no-hitter before Niagara's Jenna
Baker lined a single to right on the first pitch she saw with two down in the
frame. With runners at first in third in the seventh, Baun buckled down and got
Kristin Sito to ground out to third to end the contest.
The Griffs gave Baun all the help
she would need in the bottom of the third with a four-run frame thanks to
back-to-back doubles by Lancellotti and Helbig. Junior Lauren Hope singled to left to get the third inning started, and
she moved to second on a bunt-single by freshman Katie Medina. After senior Michelle
Fridey loaded the bases with a single through the left side, Niagara's
starter Julie DiMatteo got an out, but she gave up the back-to-back doubles to
Lancellotti and Helbig, with both of the two-base hits driving in two runs.
Canisius pounded out nine hits off
DiMatteo, who took the loss after she gave up four runs to go with four
strikeouts and two walks on 103 total pitches. Baun was awarded with her 18th
complete-game and seventh shutout of the year as she allowed just one Niagara
base runner to reach third base.
Hope went 3-for-4 with a run scored
and a stolen base in the winning effort for the Blue and Gold, while Fridey and
Helbig added to hits apiece. Lancellotti finished the day by going 1-for-3 with
a double, a run scored and two RBIs.
The win moves Canisius into the
championship round for the 17th time in the last 20 years. The
Griffs started Friday by falling to Iona 6-2, meaning the Blue and Gold will
need to defeat Iona two times on Saturday afternoon to earn the program's 13th
MAAC Tournament championship and the school's 12th berth into the
NCAA Division I Softball Tournament.
Game Notes: Canisius
now leads the all-time series against Niagara by an 83-19-2 count... The Griffs
also improved to 6-3 all-time against Purple Eagles in MAAC Tournament action...
Fridey's two hits against Niagara moved her MAAC Tournament hitting streak to
six-straight games, dating back to last year... Lancellotti and Helbig each have
four career RBIs in MAAC Tournament games... Baun is the third Canisius pitcher
in the last two seasons to win her first career MAAC Tournament start, joining
teammate Caroline Main and former
Griff Mallory Aldred, who won her
first MAAC Tourney start in the circle last season... Canisius is the only MAAC
school to come out of the losers' bracket to win the MAAC title... The last time
Canisius beat a team two times in the championship round was at the 2005 event,
when the Blue and Gold beat Iona twice to secure the school's ninth MAAC
softball title.
