Canisius junior Stephanie Pfenter led off the top of the seventh with her first
home run of the season and sophomore pitcher Jen Consaul came on in relief and earned the victory in the circle
as the Golden Griffins snapped an 11-game losing streak with a 4-3 win over
cross-town rival Buffalo Wednesday afternoon at Nan Harvey Field. The win moves
Canisius to 5-19 on the season, while the Bulls slipped to 7-12.
With the game knotted at 3-3,
Pfenter stepped to the dish to start the top of the seventh and drilled a solo
shot over the fence in right center that put the Griffs ahead for good.
Canisius looked as if it was going to add a few insurance runs in the frame as
freshmen Erica Afanador and Michelle DelPrince added base hits, and
with two outs, senior Katie Lancellotti
drew a walk to load the bases. But Buffalo pitcher Tori Speckman got out of the
jam without any further issue by getting an infield pop-up.
In the home half of the seventh,
Consaul retired the Bulls in order to secure the win, her second of the season.
She came on in relief of starter Caroline
Main and gave up three runs on five hits to go with two strikeouts.
Canisius scored first with two runs
in the top of the second after senior Lauren
Falzone drove in two runners with an RBI-single back up the middle off
Buffalo starting pitcher Holly Johnson. Canisius pushed its lead to 3-0 in the
fourth with a single run thanks to an RBI-triple down the leftfield line that
allowed Falzone to race around the bases and score from first. Buffalo scored
its first run of the game in the bottom of the fifth and knotted the game at
3-3 in the sixth after Caitlin Dekker homered to straight-away center.
As a team, Canisius racked up nine
hits in the winning effort, led by Lancellotti's three-hit outing. Falzone had
two hits and drove in two runs, while freshman Robin Kennery added a base hit to the Blue and Gold's winning cause.
The Griffs will return to action
Thursday, April 5, when the team hosts Mount St. Mary's in the 2012 home
opener, presented by Mister Pizza. First pitch at the Demske Sports Complex is
set for 3 p.m.
Game Notes: Wednesday's game marks the 41st all-time meeting between
Canisius and Buffalo in softball, with the Griffs leading the all-time series
25-16... These two teams will play a non-league twinbill at Canisius April 11...
Canisius is 3-2 in its last five games at Nan Harvey Field... Senior Lizzy Gatto was hit-by-a-pitch in the
fourth to extend her streak of reaching base safely to six-straight games...
Falzone's two hits in the win gives her eight two-hit games this year... Pfentner
is hitting .462 (6-for-13) this season when she leads off an inning for
Canisius.
