Saturday, February 18
Elon, N.C.
9:30 am
Michigan State University
5-2
8
vs
2
Fordham
1-6
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
R
H
E
Michigan State
0
3
0
4
0
1
0
8
12
0
Fordham
0
0
0
0
2
0
0
2
4
1
Spartan Softball Splits Day Two of Phoenix Invitational
2/18/2023 8:46:00 PM | Softball
ELON, N.C. – Michigan State softball split a pair of contests on day two at the Elon Phoenix Invitational at Hunt Softball Park. The Spartans defeated Fordham in the morning with ease, 8-2, before dropping the night cap to Saint Francis, 8-5. MSU came back from a 6-0 deficit against SFU to trail 6-5 and nearly complete the comeback.
Michigan State's record moves to 5-3 overall at 2-1 on the weekend.
GAME ONE - Michigan State 8, Fordham 2
Spartan Stats
Junior Ashley Miller made the start in the circle and earned the win pitching four innings, allowing just one hit and striking out four. Miller improved to 4-2 on the rubber this season. Sophomore Madison Taylor came on in relief of Miller in the fifth, pitching three innings and striking out four.
Freshman outfielder Mandy Esman led the team with three runs batted in, while senior Brooke Snyder was perfect at the plate going 2-for-2 with a triple, a walk and an RBI. Fifth-year Jessica Mabrey and junior AJ Militello each had multi-hit performances with Mabrey hitting her first long ball of the season. Junior Zaquai Dumas and Militello doubled for the Spartans, while Esman and Snyder each tripled.
Spartan batters did not strike out a single time on Saturday morning.
Scoring Summary
Militello continued her strong weekend at the plate with a double down the right field line in the second inning to score Dumas from third. Dumas doubled to the exact same spot two batters prior and took third on a wild pitch to set up the run. MSU tacked on another run two batters later when senior Anna Fox slapped a bloop into shallow right-center to score Militello. Snyder capped off the inning with her first career RBI, plating Fox from second base on a ball through the right side of the infield.
Mabrey increased the Spartan tally to lead-off the fourth inning, sending a laser over the left field fence on the first pitch she saw. Following a single to center by fifth-year Kendall Kates and a walk by Snyder, Esman extended the fifth with a two-out triple down the right field line to drive in a pair. Michigan State continued to work with two outs on the board with senior Kennedy Wyllie lining a ball to left to score Esman. Every Spartan batter stood in the batter's box in the fourth.
Fordham chipped away at the MSU advantage in the fifth with a two-run home run by Julia Petrovich. The Spartans were quick to respond however with a run of their own in the sixth. Snyder led-off the inning with a triple to right field and was promptly driven in by Esman, her third RBI of the day.
GAME TWO - Saint Francis 8, Michigan State 5
Spartan Stats
Sophomore Faith Guidry made the start for Michigan State, striking out two batters in three innings of work. Guidry allowed six runs (three earned) on six hits. Junior Ashley Miller came on in relief of Guidry pitching 2.1 hitless innings and striking out one. Making her Spartan debut was junior Ashlyn Roberts who pitched 1.2 innings in the circle allowing two earned runs on four hits.
Fifth-year Jessica Mabrey led the team with a pair of hits, matching junior Alexis Barroso for the team-high with two runs batted in. Freshman Mandy Esman drove in one on an RBI double to center field. Senior Anna Fox drew three walks on Saturday night. Fox's three walks are tied for the second-most all-time for a single game at Michigan State. It's the 31st three walk performance in the program history, last accomplished by Mabrey last season against Jacksonville on Feb. 26, 2022.
Scoring Summary
Saint Francis wasted no time getting on the scoreboard, taking a 2-0 lead in the top of the first following a two-run home run to left field. The Red Flashes added another run in the second on a single to right after an error extended the inning.
SFU took a 6-0 lead in the fourth after a three-run inning helped them open up a commanding lead. A bases loaded single put two runners across the plate before a ground out at second allowed another runner to come home.
Michigan State began to chip away at the Saint Francis lead in the bottom of the fifth with two runs coming around to score. Fox led off the inning with a walk before being driven in by a double to center by Esman. A liner to center by Mabrey allowed for Esman to come home one batter later.
Pinch-hitting for the Spartans in the bottom of the sixth, Barroso blooped a single to right-center past the out-stretched glove of the SFU second baseman to bring two Spartan runners home. Senior Camryn Wincher reached on a fielder's choice, sophomore Macy Lee singled and Fox walked to load the bases for Barroso.
With runners on the corners following Barroso's bloop, Esman drew a walk to load the bases up for Mabrey, who was promptly hit by a pitch.
Saint Francis added some insurance in the top of the seventh after a trio of singles led to two runs scored.
Michigan State put a pair of runners on base in the bottom of the seventh as the team looked to make a run, but the Spartans could not capitalize.
Up Next
Michigan State wraps up its weekend at the Elon Phoenix Invitational with a 2:00 p.m. game against James Madison on Sunday, Feb. 19.
Michigan State's record moves to 5-3 overall at 2-1 on the weekend.
GAME ONE - Michigan State 8, Fordham 2
Spartan Stats
Junior Ashley Miller made the start in the circle and earned the win pitching four innings, allowing just one hit and striking out four. Miller improved to 4-2 on the rubber this season. Sophomore Madison Taylor came on in relief of Miller in the fifth, pitching three innings and striking out four.
Freshman outfielder Mandy Esman led the team with three runs batted in, while senior Brooke Snyder was perfect at the plate going 2-for-2 with a triple, a walk and an RBI. Fifth-year Jessica Mabrey and junior AJ Militello each had multi-hit performances with Mabrey hitting her first long ball of the season. Junior Zaquai Dumas and Militello doubled for the Spartans, while Esman and Snyder each tripled.
Spartan batters did not strike out a single time on Saturday morning.
Scoring Summary
Militello continued her strong weekend at the plate with a double down the right field line in the second inning to score Dumas from third. Dumas doubled to the exact same spot two batters prior and took third on a wild pitch to set up the run. MSU tacked on another run two batters later when senior Anna Fox slapped a bloop into shallow right-center to score Militello. Snyder capped off the inning with her first career RBI, plating Fox from second base on a ball through the right side of the infield.
Mabrey increased the Spartan tally to lead-off the fourth inning, sending a laser over the left field fence on the first pitch she saw. Following a single to center by fifth-year Kendall Kates and a walk by Snyder, Esman extended the fifth with a two-out triple down the right field line to drive in a pair. Michigan State continued to work with two outs on the board with senior Kennedy Wyllie lining a ball to left to score Esman. Every Spartan batter stood in the batter's box in the fourth.
Fordham chipped away at the MSU advantage in the fifth with a two-run home run by Julia Petrovich. The Spartans were quick to respond however with a run of their own in the sixth. Snyder led-off the inning with a triple to right field and was promptly driven in by Esman, her third RBI of the day.
GAME TWO - Saint Francis 8, Michigan State 5
Spartan Stats
Sophomore Faith Guidry made the start for Michigan State, striking out two batters in three innings of work. Guidry allowed six runs (three earned) on six hits. Junior Ashley Miller came on in relief of Guidry pitching 2.1 hitless innings and striking out one. Making her Spartan debut was junior Ashlyn Roberts who pitched 1.2 innings in the circle allowing two earned runs on four hits.
Fifth-year Jessica Mabrey led the team with a pair of hits, matching junior Alexis Barroso for the team-high with two runs batted in. Freshman Mandy Esman drove in one on an RBI double to center field. Senior Anna Fox drew three walks on Saturday night. Fox's three walks are tied for the second-most all-time for a single game at Michigan State. It's the 31st three walk performance in the program history, last accomplished by Mabrey last season against Jacksonville on Feb. 26, 2022.
Scoring Summary
Saint Francis wasted no time getting on the scoreboard, taking a 2-0 lead in the top of the first following a two-run home run to left field. The Red Flashes added another run in the second on a single to right after an error extended the inning.
SFU took a 6-0 lead in the fourth after a three-run inning helped them open up a commanding lead. A bases loaded single put two runners across the plate before a ground out at second allowed another runner to come home.
Michigan State began to chip away at the Saint Francis lead in the bottom of the fifth with two runs coming around to score. Fox led off the inning with a walk before being driven in by a double to center by Esman. A liner to center by Mabrey allowed for Esman to come home one batter later.
Pinch-hitting for the Spartans in the bottom of the sixth, Barroso blooped a single to right-center past the out-stretched glove of the SFU second baseman to bring two Spartan runners home. Senior Camryn Wincher reached on a fielder's choice, sophomore Macy Lee singled and Fox walked to load the bases for Barroso.
With runners on the corners following Barroso's bloop, Esman drew a walk to load the bases up for Mabrey, who was promptly hit by a pitch.
Saint Francis added some insurance in the top of the seventh after a trio of singles led to two runs scored.
Michigan State put a pair of runners on base in the bottom of the seventh as the team looked to make a run, but the Spartans could not capitalize.
Up Next
Michigan State wraps up its weekend at the Elon Phoenix Invitational with a 2:00 p.m. game against James Madison on Sunday, Feb. 19.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Miller, Ashley (4-2)
L: ENOCH, Bailey (0-3)
Batting:
2B: Dumas, Zaquai 1 ; Militello, AJ 1
3B: Esman, Mandy 1 ; Snyder, Brooke 1
HR: Mabrey, Jessica 1
RBI: Esman, Mandy 3 ; Wyllie, Kennedy 1 ; Mabrey, Jessica 1 ; Militello, AJ 1 ; Fox, Anna 1 ; Snyder, Brooke 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Esman, Mandy 1 ; Dumas, Zaquai 1 ; Mabrey, Jessica 1 ; Militello, AJ 1 ; Kates, Kendall 1 ; Fox, Anna 1 ; Snyder, Brooke 2
CS: Militello, AJ 1
Batting:
2B: TAFFET, Sarah 1
HR: PETROVICH, Julia 1
RBI: PETROVICH, Julia 2
Base Running:
RUNS: ENOCH, Bailey 1 ; PETROVICH, Julia 1
HBP: ENOCH, Bailey 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
4
R
1
H
2
RBI
3
AB
4
R
1
H
2
RBI
1
AB
3
R
1
H
2
RBI
1
AB
2
R
2
H
2
RBI
1
Players Mentioned
3B
/ Softball
2B
/ Softball2B
/ Softball
RHP
/ Softball
C
/ Softball
OF
/ SoftballOF
/ Softball
RHP
/ Softball
LHP
/ SoftballOF
/ Softball
LHP
/ Softball
1B
/ Softball
C
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