New Rochelle, NY – The Monroe University softball team opened the Empire State Invitational with a pair of victories over Genesee Community College on Friday. The Mustangs took game one, 12-7, before using a late-inning rally to snatch game two, 13-8.
The Mustangs jumped out to a substantial 6-0 lead through two innings in the first of two contests, with freshman
Lizbeth Zambrano being the catalyst. She scored on a wild pitch to start the scoring. Then, the Bronx native roped a double to right center to score two. Zambrano then stole third before touching home plate on a throwing error by the catcher.
Overall, Zambrano went 3-for-4 with four runs scored.
A seven-run third put Genesee on top, but two three-run innings in the fifth and sixth gave the Mustangs back the lead. Freshman
McKenzie Williams started the scoring with an RBI single, with freshman
Jocelyn Shuman, and sophomores
Georgia Burr and
Gabriella Diaz recording RBIs over the course of the 6-0 run.
Freshman
Kelsea Bauer moved to 4-0 on the year after ceding one earned run through five innings of work. The San Diego native gave up just five hits and struck out six batters.
In game two, Genesee tied it up at eight in the top of the sixth after a back-and-forth contest. But the Mustangs shot out of the gates in the bottom half of the inning with five runs, putting the game out of reach for the Cougars.
A wild pitch scored freshman
Alexis Ortiz — who collected three hits in the game. Fellow freshman
Georgia Wilson, who also picked up the win in the circle, scored Zambrano and sophomore
Brianna Talley with a single through the left side. To cap it off, Diaz homered to make it 13-8.
Burr joined Ortiz with three hits in the game, including a solo home run in the fourth inning.
Monroe kicked off the invitational with two inspired victories. They will take on Corning Community College on Saturday at 2:00 pm on day two of the event.
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).
