Garnet Strike Gold With Playoff Berth
SWARTHMORE, Pa. -- The Swarthmore softball team topped the 20-win mark and reached the Conference playoffs for the third consecutive year, splitting a pair of Centennial games with visiting Franklin & Marshall on Senior Day Saturday afternoon at Clothier Fields.
Swarthmore junior Alexandra Zelaski (Middleburg, Ohio / Midpark) twirled a two-hit shutout and classmate Christine Sendelsky (Edison, N.J. / John Stevens) had two doubles and two RBIs as the Garnet moved to 20-12 overall (9-5 in the Centennial) with a 4-0 win in game two.
The win put Swarthmore over the 20-win mark the earliest in school history and ensures the Garnet will participate in the Centennial playoffs on May 3-4. Location and time are to be determined.
In between games, the Garnet honored their lone senior, shortstop Katherine Gold (Cherry Hill, N.J. / Cherry Hill East), bestowing their captain with balloons, flowers and a song.
Franklin & Marshall (8-18, 5-9 CC) squeaked out a 1-0 victory in game one, behind a five-hit shutout from senior pitcher Bonnie Crouthamei (Chatham, N.Y. / Chatham).
The Diplomats scored the lone run of game one in the top of the second. Junior centerfielder Jessika Mancino (Lancaster, Pa. / Hempfield) singled, stole second and scored on a base hit to left center by senior Robyn Jones (Titusville, N.J. / The Pennington School).
Garnet starter Kathryn Riley (Dagsboro, Del. / Indian River) suffered the loss despite a solid effort in the circle. Riley (15-6) struck out seven batters in 7.0 innings, allowing just four hits while walking one.
Runs had suddenly become scarce for Swarthmore, a team that entered the week averaging 5.1 runs per game. The scoreless drought hit 26 innings after game one Saturday, going back to the end of the Washington doubleheader on Tuesday
Merry prankster Sendelsky attempted to wake up the Garnet bench in the middle of the first game, sending teammates scurrying around the dugout with a Super Soaker water gun.
Sendelsky used a more conventional tactic to liven the slumbering Swarthmore bats in game two, smoking a two-run double down the left field line to give the Garnet a 2-0 lead. Freshmen Lauren Marczi (Chester, N.J. / West Morris) and Kira Kern (Newtown, Pa. / Council Rock North) scored on the play.
Another Garnet first-year, Krista Scheirer (Norristown, Pa. / Germantown Academy), followed with a single through the left side, driving in Sendelsky for a 3-0 Swarthmore lead.
A pair of F&M miscues in the sixth inning led to the final Garnet runs. Kern reached base for the second time, beating out an infield hit and would come around to score on a throwing error by the Diplomats.
Sendelsky, batting leadoff for the first time this season, went 2-for-3 with a run and two RBIs while freshman Melissa Emmerson (Ringwood, N.J. / Lakeland Regional) added two hits.
Zelaski (5-5) (pictured right) pitched her best game of the season, allowing just the two singles to earn her second shutout of the season.
The Garnet are a tired group, having played 10 games in eight days while posting a 6-4 record. The team takes a break from Conference play in the middle of next week, hosting a non-conference doubleheader with Moravian on Tuesday, April 22 and then travel to #18 Rowan on Thursday for a single game at 4:00 p.m. Swarthmore concludes the regular season on Saturday, April 26 with a Centennial doubleheader at Haverford. First pitch is slated for 1:00 p.m.