Marina Juan's clutch RBI double in the bottom of the seventh inning gave the Saints a walk-off win in the first of two Monday games, as the Saints exit the day with a split.
Juan roped an extra-base hit into the left-center gap with two runners on base, giving Saints' first-year head coach
Tyler Pagaduan his first win as St. Lawrence head coach after erasing a 5-0 deficit to win 7-6. St. Lawrence also took No. 13 Wisconsin-Oshkosh down to the wire in game two before falling 2-1. Their overall record stands at 1-5 exiting Monday's games.
"We had a really good day today, I'm really proud of the group for walking it off against Buffalo State," said Pagaduan. "Holding the No. 13 team in the country to two hits is another great accomplishment. It's still early in the season, but I'm feeling great about this group as we work our way through the schedule."
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Game 1: Buffalo State 6, St. Lawrence 7
Buffalo State had the first offense of the game in the top of the first inning, when they loaded the bases on Saints starter
Hannah Reardon with one away. Lexi Quagliana then posted a two-run single to give the Bengals a 2-0 lead. After a scoreless top of the second, Buffalo State added to their lead in the second and made it 5-0.
From there, Reardon settled into the game and posted a scoreless inning in the second, before the Saints tilted the offense back in their favor in the third.
Emily Wendt led off the inning with an infield knock to the shortstop, then
Caelen Jahnle walked.
Allison Kloft then came in clutch again from the No. 3 spot in the lineup, bringing Wendt around on a RBI double.
Isabel Moreno then scored two on a double of her own, making it 5-3.
St. Lawrence then completed the comeback in the fourth.
Olivia Caporale singled with one out,
Zoe Davenport came in to pinch run. She scored after Wendt legged out an infield single and the Bengals second baseman threw it away, which made it 5-4.
Maeve Thompson and
Allison Kloft kept the train moving with RBI knocks of their own, giving St. Lawrence their first lead of the day at 6-5.
Buffalo State didn't go away, tying the game again in the sixth. With two runners on Natalie Burck singled to left field, plating Megan Galbraith in the process. That made it 6-6 until the final inning of the ballgame.
It looked like the game was heading to extras before Buffalo State committed back-to-back errors in the infield with two outs. That set the stage for Juan, who stepped up to the plate with two runners on and cranked the game-winning RBI double into left center field.
Juan, Kloft, and Jahnle led the way with two hits each, while Kloft had the team-high in RBIs with two. Reardon settled into her outing nicely, allowing six runs, four of them earned, on eight hits over five and two-thirds innings.
Madison Smith earned her first collegiate win in relief, with one hit and one walk over and one and one-third innings.
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Game 2: St. Lawrence 1, No. 13 Wisconsin-Oshkosh 2
A pitching duel led to a low-scoring affair in the back half, where some early runs ultimately made the difference. St. Lawrence went down 2-0 in the first, after Oshkosh kicked the game off with a double and an RBI single. Saints starter
Marleigh Monroe settled in from there, not allowing a single hit for the remainder of her outing.
The teams battled defensively until the game's later stages, when the Saints pulled together some offense in the fifth. They loaded the bases with nobody out, forcing Oshkosh to their bullpen. Thompson then cut the lead in half on an RBI fielder's choice, and the Saints wrapped up the inning down 2-1.
St. Lawrence was able to bring two runners into scoring position in each of the sixth and seventh innings, but Oshkosh ended the threat both times and locked the game down. They earned the victory and moved to 10-3 on the season.
Marleigh Monroe went for a complete game and twirled a gem of a complete game despite being handed the loss, surrendering just two hits and two runs over six full innings pitched. She didn't allow a walk in the outing.
Kloft led the team offensively as the only St. Lawrence player to reach base twice, with a hit and a walk. Thompson also added a hit in addition to her fielder's choice that brought the Saints within one. Juan scored St. Lawrence's lone run. Wendt also had a hit, as the Saints outhit Oshkosh 3-2. They've now out-hit their opponents in three straight games.
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Up Next:
It's an off-day for the Scarlet and Brown on Tuesday before they return to the diamond to face Buffalo State for the second game of the trip, and MIT. They begin their Wednesday with the game against the Engineers at 10 a.m., before playing the Bengals at 12:15 p.m.
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