Wednesday, March 11
Washington, DC
1 PM
George Washington University
9-14
3
vs
2
Bucknell
8-13
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
R
H
E
Bucknell
0
2
0
0
0
0
0
2
6
1
George Washington
3
0
0
0
0
0
X
3
4
0
Softball Sweeps Doubleheader vs. Bucknell
3/11/2020 6:33:00 PM | Softball
Colonials earned a walk-off win in the second game
WASHINGTONÂ - Elena Shelepak's squeeze bunt scored Paris Orchard in the bottom of the eighth to give GW softball a 4-3 win over Bucknell and a home doubleheader sweep on Wednesday afternoon.
Earlier, the Buff and Blue defeated the Bison, 3-2, in the opener on the Mount Vernon Campus.
GW's pitching held Bucknell in check all day with Faith Weber tossing a complete-game gem in the opener and Kaitlin Buff delivering five innings of shutout relief in the second game.
Alessandra Ponce led the Colonials offensively with a pair of key extra-base hits. The junior from Nevada smacked a double in GW's three-run first inning in the first game and came through with a triple in the eighth to set up the walk-off victory in game two.
The Colonials (10-14) have now won eight of their past 11 games overall.
GW 3, Bucknell 2:Â Weber's all-around excellence carried the Colonials in the first game of the day.
The senior from New Jersey recorded a two-out, two-run single in the first inning to push GW's early lead to 3-0 and then made the advantage stand up with her tremendous pitching.
Weber allowed two runs on six hits over seven frames and matched her career high with strikeouts.
GW's offense started fast with the three-run opening inning. Jenna Cone walked, moved to third on Ponce's double and then beat the throw home on Sidney Bloomfield's grounder to first. After a strikeout, Weber ripped a clutch single into left field to plate two more runs.
Bucknell scored a pair in the second to edge within a run, but that turned out to be the final margin.Â
Weber allowed just one base runner in the third through fifth innings before escaping a jam in the sixth with a bases-loaded strikeout to retire the side. In the seventh, the GW right-hander struck out the side with a trio of swinging Ks.
All four of GW's hits in the opener came over the first two innings with Cone (1-for-2 with a walk) the lone Colonial to reach base more than once.
GW 4, Bucknell 3 (8 innings):Â The Colonials came from behind and then worked extra innings to complete the sweep.
In the eighth, Ponce hammered an opposite-field triple to start the game-winning rally. After Bloomfield was intentionally walked, Shelepak laid down a perfect squeeze bunt on a 1-1 count to bring home the pinch runner Orchard.
Those late-game heroics made a winner out of Buff, who worked around five hits and four walks in her five shutout frames. It equaled the longest outing of the season for the senior from California.
GW trailed 3-0 before exploding for three runs on four hits in the fourth. Back-to-back-to-back singles from Cone, Ponce and Bloomfield to open the inning loaded the bases before Weber's sacrifice fly got the Buff and Blue on the scoreboard.
With two outs, Mia Parker split the gap in right to bring home two more and even the score. The game stayed deadlocked before the Colonials found a way to manufacture the winning run four frames later.Â
Bloomfield's threw out a runner at the plate trying to score in the sixth, and the Colonials' flawless defense behind Buff made a difference in the late innings.
Cone and Ponce both finished 2-for-4 in the second game to pace a seven-hit attack.
ON DECK:Â GW continues its homestand this weekend, hosting Maryland Eastern Shore for three games. The Colonials and Hawks will play a Saturday doubleheader starting at noon before a single contest on Sunday with another noon start.
Earlier, the Buff and Blue defeated the Bison, 3-2, in the opener on the Mount Vernon Campus.
GW's pitching held Bucknell in check all day with Faith Weber tossing a complete-game gem in the opener and Kaitlin Buff delivering five innings of shutout relief in the second game.
Alessandra Ponce led the Colonials offensively with a pair of key extra-base hits. The junior from Nevada smacked a double in GW's three-run first inning in the first game and came through with a triple in the eighth to set up the walk-off victory in game two.
The Colonials (10-14) have now won eight of their past 11 games overall.
GW 3, Bucknell 2:Â Weber's all-around excellence carried the Colonials in the first game of the day.
The senior from New Jersey recorded a two-out, two-run single in the first inning to push GW's early lead to 3-0 and then made the advantage stand up with her tremendous pitching.
Weber allowed two runs on six hits over seven frames and matched her career high with strikeouts.
GW's offense started fast with the three-run opening inning. Jenna Cone walked, moved to third on Ponce's double and then beat the throw home on Sidney Bloomfield's grounder to first. After a strikeout, Weber ripped a clutch single into left field to plate two more runs.
Bucknell scored a pair in the second to edge within a run, but that turned out to be the final margin.Â
Weber allowed just one base runner in the third through fifth innings before escaping a jam in the sixth with a bases-loaded strikeout to retire the side. In the seventh, the GW right-hander struck out the side with a trio of swinging Ks.
All four of GW's hits in the opener came over the first two innings with Cone (1-for-2 with a walk) the lone Colonial to reach base more than once.
GW 4, Bucknell 3 (8 innings):Â The Colonials came from behind and then worked extra innings to complete the sweep.
In the eighth, Ponce hammered an opposite-field triple to start the game-winning rally. After Bloomfield was intentionally walked, Shelepak laid down a perfect squeeze bunt on a 1-1 count to bring home the pinch runner Orchard.
Those late-game heroics made a winner out of Buff, who worked around five hits and four walks in her five shutout frames. It equaled the longest outing of the season for the senior from California.
GW trailed 3-0 before exploding for three runs on four hits in the fourth. Back-to-back-to-back singles from Cone, Ponce and Bloomfield to open the inning loaded the bases before Weber's sacrifice fly got the Buff and Blue on the scoreboard.
With two outs, Mia Parker split the gap in right to bring home two more and even the score. The game stayed deadlocked before the Colonials found a way to manufacture the winning run four frames later.Â
Bloomfield's threw out a runner at the plate trying to score in the sixth, and the Colonials' flawless defense behind Buff made a difference in the late innings.
Cone and Ponce both finished 2-for-4 in the second game to pace a seven-hit attack.
ON DECK:Â GW continues its homestand this weekend, hosting Maryland Eastern Shore for three games. The Colonials and Hawks will play a Saturday doubleheader starting at noon before a single contest on Sunday with another noon start.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Weber, Faith (7-8)
L: Geffert, Raeanne (5-9)
Batting:
2B: Mariano, Halie 1
RBI: Mariano, Halie 1 ; Alemany, Marisa 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Wolfgang, Taylor 1 ; Mariano, Halie 1
HBP: Rivait, Nicole 1 ; Baluch, Sarah 1
Batting:
2B: Ponce, Alessandra 1
RBI: Bloomfield, Sidney 1 ; Weber, Faith 2
Base Running:
RUNS: Cone, Jenna 1 ; Bloomfield, Sidney 1 ; Ortlieb, Olivia 1
SB: Bloomfield, Sidney 1 ; Weber, Faith 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
3
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
AB
2
R
1
H
1
RBI
0
AB
3
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
AB
3
R
0
H
1
RBI
2
Players Mentioned
OF
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
UT
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
UT
/ Softball
IF
/ Softball
UT
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