Cobleskill, NY: The SUNY Cobleskill softball team made it a perfect Friday afternoon at Fighting Tiger Field, sweeping a Skyline Conference doubleheader from the University of Maine at Presque Isle by scores of 3-0 and 7-2 to improve to 14-16 overall and 6-4 in conference play.
Game 1: In the opener, Madelynn Orosz delivered arguably the finest performance of her career, tossing a complete-game shutout. Orosz scattered just four hits over seven innings, walked none, and struck out one while needing only 59 pitches, 47 of which were strikes, to put away the Owls. The right-handed pitcher held UMPI scoreless from the first inning to the last, stranding four base runners.
The offense did its part in a crisp 1:05 game; Samantha Bargren got things going in the third inning, opening with a double and eventually coming around to score. Sammy Fausti plated Bargren with a two-out RBI double to give Cobleskill a 1-0 lead. Kylie Rattigan and Avery Prievo extended the advantage in the fifth — Rattigan's two-bagger drove home Bargren again, and Prievo singled home Rattigan to make it 3-0. Rattigan finished 1-for-2 with a walk and an RBI, while Prievo went 2-for-3 with an RBI and Fausti added a double and an RBI.
Game 2: The nightcap was a tighter contest, but the Fighting Tigers broke it open with a six-run fifth inning to pull away for a 7-2 victory. Cobleskill starter Sam Lawton held the Owls at bay through three innings before giving way to Gabriella Wendelken, who picked up the win, her sixth on the season, by working four innings of two-run ball.
The big frame in the fifth was opportunistic hitting and timely small game. After Avery Prievo and Samantha Bargren singled to start the inning and Brielle Dixon drew a walk to load the bases, Mackenzie Carver reached on a fielding error that brought home Prievo. Aliyah Neeser followed with a single that drove in two more, Laci Prignon laced a run-scoring double, and Kylie Rattigan, who went 1-for-3 with two RBI on the night, capped the outburst with a two-run double to push the lead to 7-2. Rattigan finished the doubleheader with four RBI across the two games.
Bargren and Wendelken each contributed hits in the second game as Cobleskill totaled eight hits.
Up Next: The Fighting Tigers are back in action Saturday morning with a 10 a.m. doubleheader against Husson University, moved up from its original time due to anticipated afternoon rain. First pitch at Fighting Tiger Field.
