May 1, 2003

2003 NJAC SOFTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP
 TOURNAMENT GAME SUMMARIES

DAY 1

RAMAPO 2, RUTGERS-CAMDEN 1 (11 innings)

In an opening game marathon, the Roadrunners clinched the opening round victory when junior pitcher Jamie Anzaldi drove in Andrea Pastiglione in the bottom of the 11th inning for a 2-1 win.

Ramapo posted two runs on nine hits with five errors while Rutgers-Camden recorded one run on six hits with no errors. Rutgers Camden took a 1-0 lead in the sixth inning when sophomore Becky Johnson was driven in by a single to center by freshman Dana Jennings. Ramapo answered back with a run in the bottom of the sixth as senior Kelly Kernan knocked an RBI double plating Lauran Dathe.
 

Anzaldi went 2-for-3 in the game with one RBI while Kernan posted two hits on four at-bats with one RBI. For Rutgers Camden, Jennings went 2-for-5 with one RBI.

Ramapo senior pitcher Tara Solan earned the win in relief, improving to 15-3 on the season. She struck out four and allowed only one hit in 5.2 innings of work. Scarlet Raptor right-hander Sarah O'Malley was the hard-luck loser, going the entire distance for Rutgers-Camden.

MONTCLAIR STATE 4, WILLIAM PATERSON 2

The third-seeded Red Hawks hit four home runs to account for all of their runs in a 4-2 win over second-seeded William Paterson.

Montclair junior shortstop Diana Auteri hit the fourth pitch of the game over the left center fence to give Montclair a 1-0 lead in the first at-bat of the contest. Sophomore third baseman Kari McDonnell followed with a solo shot to right field two batters later for her team-leading eighth homer of the season and a 2-0 MSU lead. The opposing Pioneers would score twice in the bottom of the first on a hit, an error, and a double steal to tie the game at 2-2.

Montclair freshman designated player Athanasia Totaro put the Red Hawks on top for good with a blast to left field for her fourth homer this spring, and finished 3-for-4 at the plate. Junior first baseman Dana Spragure hit the fourth home run of the game in the next at-bat of the campaign to left center to close out the scoring.

Junior pitcher Crystal Sweeney improved to 18-4 this season after allowing just three hits and one earned run while walking one and striking out six. Diana Catalano, who replaced William Paterson starter Sam Kszepka following Montclair State's first two home runs, took the loss in falling to 9-5 overall.

DAY 2

WILLIAM PATERSON 3, RUTGERS-CAMDEN 1

Second-seeded William Paterson eliminated fourth-seeded Rutgers-Camden with a 3-1 win in the first elimination game of the 2003 NJAC Tournament.

Rutgers Camden took an early 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning after Celeste Chinappi singled to left field and later scored on Becky Johnson's RBI single to left. William Paterson quickly took the lead in the top of the second  inning with runs by Liz Carroll and Morgan Dunlap  Carroll singled to lead off the inning and Dunlap doubled to left field to score Carroll. Danielle Patlen drove in Dunlap for the winning run with a double to left. William Paterson posted an insurance run in the third with Lindsey Santana scoring from third on a wild pitch. 

Carroll went 2-for-2 with one run and Dunlap went 1-for3 with a run scored and an RBI. For the Scarlet Raptors, Johnson went 2-for3 with an RBI and Chinnapi went 1-for-3 with one run scored. William Paterson posted three runs on seven hits with one error while Rutgers Camden recorded one run on three hits with four errors. 

Rookie Jennifer Scott earned the win, striking out four and walking three in seven innings while Sarah O'Malley took the loss for Rutgers-Camden.


MONTCLAIR STATE 7, RAMAPO 2

Montclair State broke the 27-game winning streak of Ramapo by earning a 7-2 victory in rain-delayed winner's bracket game.

Ramapo took a 1-0 lead in the second inning when Jackie Morris reached on an error that scored Laura Germano.The Roadrunners posted a second run in the fourth when Jamie Anzaldi doubled to left field scoring Germano.

After the game was halted due to inclement weather, Montclair’s Stephanie Romanko scored the Red Hawks' first run when Kari McDonnell was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded. Athanasia Totaro then belted a grand slam to give Montclair a 5-2 edge. Dana Sprague then homered to increase the Montclair lead to 6-2. The Red Hawks added one more run in the bottom of the sixth for their final margin of victory 

Totaro went 1-for-4 with one run and four RBI while Fata went 1-for-2 with an RBI and two runs scored. Germano went 1-for-3 with one RBI for the Roadrunners.

Anzaldi suffered her first loss of the season, striking out one and walking eight in six innings of work. Crystal Sweeney earned the win with four strikeouts, and no walks in a complete game victory.

DAY 3

WILLIAM PATERSON 7, RAMAPO 3

William Paterson eliminated its second straight opponent by topping number one seeded Ramapo, 7-3.

Ramapo took an early 2-0 lead in the top of the first when Andrea Pastiglione knocked an RBI double and later scored on an error. William Paterson tied the game in the bottom of the inning when Mindy Coxe blasted a double to center to score Maria Brown. Coxe would later score on an error to tie the game at 2-2.

The Pioneers took the lead in the second with runs by Danielle Patlen Kelly Harchetts, Brown, and Cox. Ramapo responded with a run in the third, while William Paterson added an insurance run in the sixth for the final 7-3 margin of victory.

Brown went 2-for-3 with three runs and two RBI while Coxe went 1-for-3.Liz Carroll and Katie Morris each went 1-for-3 with an RBI apiece. For the Roadrunners, Moore went 4-for-4 with one run scored, while Pastiglione went 2-for-4 with one RBI.

Ramapo pitcher Tara Solan suffered the loss, while Pioneer starter Jennifer Scott earned the complete game victory.

WILLIAM PATERSON 2, MONTCLAIR STATE 0

William Paterson avoided elimination for the third straight game and defeated Montclair State for the first time in four meetings this season with a 2-0 victory. The victory forced a seventh and deciding game between the two games in the 2003 NJAC Softball Tournament Championship Game.

Pioneer rookie pitcher Jennifer Scott threw a no-hit shutout for her second victory of the day.


The game was tied until the fourth inning when William Paterson posted the only two runs of the game with scores by Pam Migliaccio and Morgan Dunlap. Both scored on an RBI single by Danielle Patlen. 

Crystal Sweeney took the loss for Montclair State, posting one strikeout and two walks in seven innings of work.

Liz Carroll went 2-for-3, while Patten went 2-for-3 with two RBI.

DAY 4

WILLIAM PATERSON 5, MONTCLAIR STATE 1

William Paterson battled its way out of the elimination bracket to capture the 2003 New Jersey Athletic Conference Softball Championship by defeating Montclair State for the second time in as many days in the title game, 5-1.

The tournament victory gave the Pioneers the NJAC's automatic bid to
the NCAA Division III National Softball Championships. William Paterson will be making its first appearance in the national tournament since winning the 2001
East Regional. It is the program's second conference championship and first
since 1999. By winning four games in just over 48 hours, the Pioneers became
the third team in as many seasons to win the championship after being
relegated to the elimination bracket.

The Pioneers received key contributions from a number of their freshmen. Right-hander Jenn Scott, who allowed three earned runs in 30 innings pitched in the tournament while going 4-0, improved to 8-3 while allowing four hits and an unearned run in the third. She also struck out two while walking one.

Offensively, right fielder Danielle Patlen drillied a two-run double to highlight a four-run first inning against MSU starter Crystal Sweeney. Patlen finished 2-for-3 with two RBI, first baseman Jen Fenton was 2-for-3 with an RBI single in the third and third baseman Mindy Coxe was 3-for-4 and scored a run. In all, the four freshmen in the William Paterson lineup combined for eight of the team's 13 hits.

A pair of seniors also had strong games for the Pioneers. Shortstop Katie
Morris was 3-for-4 and scored a run while catcher Morgan Dunlap was 2-for-4 with two runs scored and drove in a run with a first-inning fielder's choice.

Sweeney took the loss for Montclair State, allowing six hits and four runs
in two innings of work. Right fielder Joelle Fata scored the Red Hawks' lone run on an error in the third. Catcher Tonya Barnes finished 2-for-3 for the Red Hawks.