Columbus, GA – The Monroe University softball team bounced back from a 0-for-2 first day of competition in Georgia to go 2-1 on Saturday.
The Mustangs took on Tallahassee Community College, Southeastern Illinois College and Roane State Community College, dropping the first game, 11-10, in extra innings, but rebounding to defeat Southeastern Illinois (12-0) and Roane State (1-0) via shutout.
Against Tallahassee, a two-run bottom half of the eight wasn't enough to capture an extra innings victory. The Mustangs outhit the Eagles, but four errors eventually caught up with them.
Monroe battled back from an 8-1 deficit in the first four innings, particularly thanks to a five-run seventh to force extras. A two-RBI single by freshman
McKenzie Williams boosted the Mustangs to an 8-8 tie.
After yielding three runs in the eighth, sophomores
Gabrielle Gonzalez and
Kayla Suleski delivered two-out RBIs. But a final out on a groundout buried the comeback effort.
Gonzalez led the way with three hits, while Williams and sophomore
Nathalie Mongrain joined Gonzalez with multi-hits. Freshman
Lizbeth Zambrano and Williams each recorded two RBIs.
Game two and three displayed the pitching prowess of the Mustangs as they shutout both teams to cap off the road trip. Freshman
Kelsea Bauer threw 5.1 scoreless innings against Southeastern Illinois, while freshman
Georgia Wilson threw a complete game shutout against Roane State, allowing just four hits and three walks while striking out two batters.
Freshman
Emily Hernandez led the way in game two with two doubles and four RBIs. Suleski and Zambrano — who hit her second home run of the season in the win — both recorded multiple hits. Sophomore
Maricela Colon swiped three bags in the contest.
In game three, a second inning double from Colon was all the offense the game would see, leading the Mustangs to victory. Mongrain tallied two singles in the third and final game.
Monroe will head to Texas next week for a six-game trip. Its first opponent will be Galveston College, with the doubleheader beginning at 1:00 pm on Thursday, February 27.
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE UNIVERSITY
The athletic program at Monroe University encompasses a total of 26 teams competing across nine sports. There are 19 varsity and junior varsity programs, as well as the Monroe University marching band, competing on the New Rochelle campus as the Mustangs (NJCAA Division I). The Monroe Express, based out of the Bronx campus, has seven teams competing at the NJCAA Division III level.
For more information about the Monroe Mustangs, please visit us at
www.MonroeUMustangs.com or follow us on social media: Facebook (
Monroe Mustangs Athletics), Twitter (
@MonroeMustangs) and Instagram (
@monroemustangs).
