The Canisius College softball team returned to action for the first time since Feb. 20, and posted a 1-1 record on the first day of the UMBC/Coppin State Invitational in Baltimore, Md. The Golden Griffins (4-3) started their day with a 9-6 loss to Seton Hall before rebounding for a 4-1 win over Brown in the afternoon.
Senior Paige Freiberger went 3-for-4 with a double, two runs scored, three RBI and three walks in the two games for the Blue and Gold, while fellow senior Lauren Hope added two doubles, scored three times and swiped two bases in the two-game set. Junior Katie Lancellotti also drove in three runs in the Griffs' two games as the team has now scored victories in two of their last three contests, dating back to an 8-4 win over East Tennessee State Feb. 20.
In the 4-1 win over Brown, Canisius jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second on a RBI-single to right by Lancellotti, which allowed sophomore Lizzy Gatto to score from second. The Blue and Gold added another run in the bottom of the fifth when Hope got on base with a two-out double to straight-away center field. Senior Kerry Ulmer followed Hope's hit with a single of her own down the left field line which allowed Hope to score from second easily. In the sixth, Canisius added two runs on a single by Lancellotti that allowed Gatto and Freiberger to cross the plate.
The Bears (1-3-1) scored in the top half of the seventh inning off Canisius sophomore Amanda Baun, but it was not enough to keep the Blue and Gold's starter from earning her second win of the season and her first complete-game of the 2011 campaign. Baun allowed just one run while scattering five hits over seven innings. She also struck out six and walked three while allowing only five runners to reach as far as second base.
In the first game of the day, both Canisius and Seton Hall came out firing, as both squads posted four runs in the first inning. Freiberger drove in two runs with no one out in the top half of the first, and she and Gatto would later score in the frame on a Seton Hall error. In the bottom of the first, the Pirates would answer with four runs of their own, keyed by a triple off the bat of senior Michelle Reed that drove in three runs.
Freibeger gave the Blue and Gold a 5-4 lead in the top of the fourth with an RBI-single that plated Hope from second base, but that lead was short-lived, as the Pirates answered with a single run in the bottom half of that inning to knot the game at 5-5. The Griffs took the lead one last time in the sixth inning when pinch-runner Lauryn Chris moved around the bases thanks to a pair of wild pitches and a passed ball, but Seton Hall posted a four-spot on the scoreboard in the bottom of the frame, with Maria DeLuca and Nalin Bennett each driving in a pair of runs to help lift the Pirates to victory.
Canisius freshman Jen Consaul took the loss in the circle in relief for the Griffs after she allowed four runs on four hits while fanning five and walking two in 2.2 innings of work. She came in for starter Caroline Main, who was lifted after she allowed five runs on five hits while walking six and striking out two in 3.1 innings. Sophomore Hannah Hill earned the win for the Pirates (7-12) after she gave up just two runs on six hits while striking out two and walking four in six innings of relief.
The Griffs will return to action Sunday with a pair of games on the final day of the UMBC/Coppin State Invitational. Canisius will meet Morgan State at 9 a.m., before taking on UMBC at 1 p.m.
