CORTLAND, N.Y. –
Karlee Weeden (Maybrook/Valley Central) tossed a four-hitter as Cortland defeated nationally 11th-ranked St. John Fisher, 4-1, in the opening game of a non-league doubleheader at Dragon Field. The visiting Cardinals won the nightcap, 5-4, as Cortland's rally from a four-run deficit in the final inning came up just short.
Cortland (3-1) will begin SUNYAC Eastern Division play by hosting Oneonta on Thursday in a 3 p.m. doubleheader. The SUNYAC is using a revised schedule format this spring and Cortland is one of five schools in the East.
GAME 1: Cortland 4, St. John Fisher 1
Weeden earned the victory after allowing just four hits and one walk and striking out two batters over seven innings. She gave up a leadoff homer to Allie Klonowski in the second that staked Fisher to a 1-0 lead. Rachel Evans followed with a double and went to third on a Maddie Klidonas one-out single, but Weeded escaped that jam and didn't allow a runner past first base the rest of the game.
Cortland trailed 1-0 before scoring two runs in the bottom of the fifth inning.
Alyssa Finno (Hurley/Kingston) led off with a single and
Sabrina Caputo (Westbury/W.T. Clarke) and
Tori Reich (Cornwall) each walked to load the bases. After a fielder's choice resulted in a force out at home,
Kelly O'Gorman (Clifton Park/Shenendehowa) hit a fly ball that was dropped by the center fielder. Caputo and Reich each scored on the play, which was officially ruled as a sacrifice fly and an error, to give the Red Dragons the lead.
The Red Dragon notched two insurance runs in the bottom of the sixth.
Lexi Szesnat (Colonie) led off with a double and
Jess Miller (Campbell Hall/Goshen) reached on an error to put runners on first and third. Finno's sac fly drove in Szesnat and an error two batters later allowed pinch runner
Megan Weber (Lockport/Starpoint) to score.
Finno finished 2-for-2 while Szesnat and
Cailey Cuttita (Clifton Park/Shenendehowa) each went 1-for-3 for the Red Dragons. St. John Fisher pitcher Emily Trotman tossed all six innings and gave up four hits and four runs, but only one earned, with three walks and two strikeouts.
GAME 2: St. John Fisher 5, Cortland 4
Fisher (5-1) broke a 1-1 tie with two runs each in the fifth and sixth innings. Cortland, however, mounted a rally in the bottom of the seventh. Reich and
Gina Meyers (Liverpool) led off with back-to-back singles, and with one out Finno reached on an error to load the bases. Cuttita hit a two-run single to cut the Cardinals' lead to 5-3, and Szesnat walked to load the bases. Miller fouled out to the first baseman, with Finno tagging on the play to score, but an ensuing rundown on the basepaths led to an unconventional double play that ended the game.
Fisher led 1-0 in the top of the third when Maria Marcera doubled and scored on a Sammie Torlish RBI single. Cortland knotted the score in the bottom of the inning on a Reich leadoff single, a Finno two-out walk, a wild pitch, a Cuttita walk, and another wild pitch.
The guests took a 3-1 lead in the fifth with the help of three Cortland errors. Trotman led off with a double, and a Marcera single and an error put runners on second and third. Torlish reached on an error, with one run scoring, and two batters later another error allowed a run to cross the plate. The Cardinals added two in the sixth. Allison Rogowski got on via error and moved to second on a Klidonas sac bunt. Trotman's double drove home a run, and two batters later Torlish doubled to bring in Trotman.
Jess Patterson earned the win for Fisher despite allowing five hits and six walks in seven innings. She struck out seven batters and gave up four runs, three earned.
Isabel Milazzo (Elmira/Elmira Notre Dame) started for Cortland and went five and a third innings. She gave up four runs, but only one earned, on seven hits and a walk with two strikeouts.
Courtney Kane (Yaphank/Bellport) allowed one run on three hits over the final inning and two thirds.
Reich was 2-for-2 with a walk and two runs scored and Cuttita finished 1-for-3 with a walk and two RBI to lead the Cortland offense. Trotman and Torlish each finished 3-for-4, with Trotman doubling twice and Torlish once, and Marcera was 2-for-3 with a double to account for most of Fisher's 10-hit attack. Torlish drove in two runs and Trotman and Marcera each scored two runs.
