Offense Shines in Game One as Lakers Split with SUNY Niagara
SANBORN, N.Y. – Finger Lakes Community College softball unleashed a 16-hit barrage in game one to fuel a 19-6 win over SUNY Niagara on Wednesday, before dropping game two 14-5 to settle for a split in their Region III road doubleheader.
Game one was all about offensive firepower from the start. Anna Kurtzhalts (Grand Island, N.Y./Grand Island) set the tone at the top of the order, going 3-for-6 with 2 doubles, 2 RBIs, and 2 stolen bases. Brazen Beckwith (Geneva, N.Y./Geneva) continued her hot streak at the plate, delivering a 3-for-4 day with 3 RBIs and 3 runs scored, including a double. Emma Johnson (Fairport, N.Y./Fairport) matched Beckwith with a 3-hit, 3-RBI performance of her own, as the Lakers built early momentum with a 5-run first inning and never looked back.
After Niagara cut the lead to 5-3 in the second, Finger Lakes answered with 4 more in the third and tacked on runs in five of the game's seven innings. Ella Upchurch (Palmyra, N.Y./Palmyra-Macedon) added a pair of RBIs and 2 hits, while Lauren Pilon (Kendall, N.Y./Kendall), Cameron Crawford (Ontario, N.Y./Wayne), and Jenna Tyczynski (Westmoreland, N.Y./Westmoreland) all chipped in an RBI apiece. The Lakers were aggressive on the basepaths, tallying 7 stolen bases in the win.
Madison Anderson (Ashville, N.Y./Chautauqua Lake) picked up her 6th win of the season, going the distance and allowing just three earned runs over seven innings.
Game two flipped the script. Despite another early spark and 11 total hits—including 2-hit efforts from Anna Kurtzhalts, Brazen Beckwith, Cameron Crawford, and Ella Upchurch—the Lakers couldn't keep pace as Niagara capitalized on a string of defensive miscues.
Beckwith was again a standout, going 3-for-4 with 3 RBIs in the loss, while Cameron Crawford and Jenna Tyczynski drove in the other two Laker runs. Anderson took the loss in the circle before being relieved by Crawford in the fifth.
With the split, Finger Lakes moves to 7-9 on the season heading into another Region III matchup this weekend at Hudson Valley Community College in Troy, N.Y.