ROCHESTER, NY – The RIT softball team (3-11, 0-2 Liberty League) opened Liberty League play with a doubleheader for the first home games of the season. The Tigers dropped a pair to conference foe Rensselaer (14-4, 4-0 Liberty League) at Tiger Stadium on a cool and windy Saturday afternoon. The Engineers won game one, 4-2 and took game two 12-1 in five innings.
In game one, RIT started the scoring with two runs in the bottom of the third.
Brooke Kaminski (Marlboro, NJ/Marlboro) and
Amber Libby (Waterboro, ME/Massabesic) walked to start the inning and
McKenzie Martin (Deposit, NY/Deposit) blasted a double to right field that would score both of the base runners. Rensselaer was quiet until the top of the fifth when they came back to score two runs to tie the game.
The Engineers took the lead in the top of the seventh by scoring two runs off of two hits and one Tiger error.
Martin led the Tigers offense with a double and two RBI's.
Amanda Cook (Royal Palm Beach, FL/Suncoast) and
Sam Killian (Webster, NY/Webster Schroeder) each added a hit for the Tigers. Sophomore
Sierra Valentine (Rochester, NY/Greece Athena) took the loss for RIT, allowing four hits and five walks with three strikeouts in seven innings.
RPI senior Kristina Weltzin earned the win on the mound allowing just three hits with three walks and five strikeouts. Weltzin set the Rensselaer school record for career wins, earning her 59th all-time.
In game two, Rensselaer got the bats going quick with three first inning runs. The Engineers kept going scoring in each of the five innings. The Tigers scored their lone run in the bottom of the second.
Katelyn Koester (Amherst, NY/St. Mary's School for the Deaf) doubled on a hit to centerfield, while
Amber Libby (Waterboro, ME/Massabesic) singled to left and scored Koester.
Freshmen
Lauren Mahar (Rotterdam, NY/Schalmont) took the loss on the mound for RIT with three strikeouts. Stephanie Caudle earned the win for Rensselaer with eight strikeouts and only three hits.
The Tigers will be back in action Sunday for another doubleheader against Union College in Tiger Stadium with the first game getting underway at 1 p.m.
