EASTON, Pa. – Seeking its fourth straight Patriot League regular season title, the preseason favorite Boston University softball team started off conference play in dominating fashion with a pair of run-rule victories at Lafayette on Saturday afternoon.
With the 10-2(5) and 8-0(5) victories, the Terriers (18-13) extend their win streak to seven games, as the Leopards drop to 5-17. BU went a combined 24-for-55 (.436) at the plate and held the Leopards to .194 (7-for-36) while boasting a 8-2 advantage in extra-base hits for its third consecutive DH sweep.
Graduate student
Jen Horita, senior
Emily Gant and sophomore
Kayla Roncin all collected a team-high four hits on the day with Gant tallying five RBIs. Sophomore
Lauren Keleher went a perfect 3-for-3 in the first game with three extra-base hits and finished with seven total RBIs. In the circle, juniors
Allison Boaz (10-4) and
Lizzy Avery (8-8) combined for 14 strikeouts with Boaz earning her fourth career shutout and the Terriers' fourth overall of the season.
GAME 1: BU - 10, Lafayette - 2
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Terriers quickly jumped out to a 3-0 lead with Gant singling up the middle for an RBI and Keleher adding a two-RBI double down the left field line in the first inning.
- Avery demonstrated her firepower early on with five strikeouts through the first two innings with four Leopards coming up empty on swings.
- BU all but put the game away in the fourth with five runs off six hits.
- Junior Audrey Sellers (double), junior Caitlin Coker (walk) and Horita (single) loaded the bases before Roncin plated two runners on a single up the middle.
- Roncin then got caught in a rundown to help Horita score from third for the 6-0 advantage.
- Keleher followed Gant's single by launching a two-run homer to right center.
- Lafayette avoided the shutout with a double and two-run homer against Avery.
- Keleher responded by putting the game back in run-rule territory, 10-2, by hitting her second two-RBI double to plate both Horita (single) and Roncin (single) in the top of the fifth.
- Senior Nicole Amodio secured the win by catching a liner at first and touching the bag following a one-out walk to end the game.
GAME 2: BU - 8, Lafayette - 0
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Following two scoreless innings, for the second time on the day, Gant put BU on the scoreboard first with a two-RBI single.
- Senior Aliyah Huerta-Leipner followed Keleher's RBI sac fly with a two-RBI double to extend the lead to 5-0.
- The Terriers added three more runs in the fourth, as sophomore Lauren Nett doubled to left and scored on Coker's RBI single.
- Gant added the last two runs by doubling home both Roncin and Coker for the 8-0 advantage.
- After BU turned a double play to end the bottom of the fourth, Boaz earned three swinging strikeouts to seal the run-rule shutout.
UP NEXT
- BU will wrap up the weekend series at Lafayette with a 12 p.m. start on Sunday (March 27).
- The Terriers are currently 24-0 all-time in the series.