Army Ends Season in Hard-Fought PL Semis

Friday, May 12

Bethlehem, Pa.

1:30 PM

Army West Point

36-20

Holy Cross

13-30

Army

Holy Cross

Army Ends Season in Hard-Fought PL Semis

May 12, 2017 | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The third-seeded Army West Point softball team staved off elimination in the Patriot League tournament against No. 4 Holy Cross, 7-0, before dropping a 5-3 decision to top-seeded Lehigh Friday at Leadership Park.

The Black Knights closed out their season with an overall record of 36-21, while the Crusaders capped their 2017 campaign at 13-30. The Mountain Hawks improved to 34-18.

ARMY HIGHLIGHTS AND GAME NOTES

Army jumped to 69-29 in the all-time series versus Holy Cross and 7-0 in the league tournament.
The Black Knights are now 35-85 against Lehigh and 13-23 in postseason play.
Senior Alee Rashenskas and rookie Amelia Trotter were named to the Patriot League's All-Tournament team Sunday after the tournament's conclusion.
Renee Poirier notched her 25th career victory in the win over Holy Cross.
Ashley Yoo finished the year as Army's top hitter with an average of .329 (48-for-146), followed closely by Gladys Esparza-Gallegos at .328 (20-for-61).
Rookie Lacey Swafford was the team's hits leader with 51, while Rashenskas was the only other Cadet with more than 45 hits on the year at 49.
Rashenskas scored a team-high 32 runs on the season, giving the Kankakee, Ill., native 105 in her career which ranks 10th in program history.
She is also the program-leader in career walks (84), fourth in hits (223), fifth in at-bats (677), sixth in total bases (256), tied for sixth in games played (218), tied for eighth in RBI (96) and tied for ninth in stolen bases (33).
Emily Ballesteros led the team with 15 extra-base hits and was even with Swafford for the most doubles with 10.
Ballesteros was also the clubhouse leader in runs batted in with 31 in her rookie campaign.
In the circle, Poirier finished as Army's leader in earned run average (2.19), wins (14), complete games (15), appearances (32), saves (5), innings pitched (150.1), strikeouts (78) and opponent's batting average (.236).
Caroline Smith closed out her career donning the Black and Gold as the program's third-winningest pitcher with 50 victories. She is also tied for third in appearances (115), fourth in innings pitched (565.0) and eighth in winning percentage (.543) and strikeouts (172).
Fellow senior Kristen West capped her career with a record of 35-25, ranking sixth in program history for wins. Additionally, she is fourth in winning percentage (.583) and sixth in appearances (109).

LINEUP BREAKDOWN vs. HOLY CROSS
Rashenskas (2B): 1-for-4 with a walk, run scored and an RBI
Swafford (LF): 1-for-3 with a walk and an RBI

Reilly (PH): 1-for-1 with a double

Ballesteros (3B): 0-for-4 with a walk and an RBI
Harrison (SS): 1-for-4 with a walk

Hoover (PH): N/A

Yoo (DP): 0-for-3
Gray (PH): 0-for-1
Trotter (RF): 1-for-3 with a walk, three runs scored and three stolen bases
Ontiveros (1B): 3-for-4 with an RBI

McKinney (PR): One run scored and a stolen base

Gates (CF): 1-for-2 with an RBI

Wadyka (PR/CF): 2-for-2 with a run scored, RBI and a stolen base

Kim (C): 0-for-2 with a run scored

Hartman (PH): 0-for-1

Poirier (P): 7.0 innings, five hits, 0 runs (earned), six walks and one strikeout

FACTS & FIGURES

The Black Knights scored seven runs on 11 hits and did not commit an error, while Holy Cross was held scoreless on five hits and had two errors defensively.

HOW IT HAPPENED vs. HOLY CROSS

Both pitchers were on top of their games early as the two combined to retire the first 10 batters who stepped up to the plate.
Taylor Moss recorded the game's first hit for Holy Cross with one out in the bottom of the second, followed by a single from Savannah Young.
Rookie Katie Ontiveros got the Black Knights on the base paths to lead off the third inning with a single to left center. Senior Tyler McKinney entered the game as a pinch runner and made an immediate impact by stealing second and scoring on a Lacey Swafford single for the first run of the game.
The inning continued with Alee Rashenskas providing an insurance run after getting out of a pickle between third and home due to an error.
That offensive production continued in the following stanza as Army put up a three-spot to stretch its lead to 5-0. Rookie Amelia Trotter started the inning with a hit and advanced into scoring position with her first of three steals on the day. She came around to score two batters later as Izzy Gates singled through the right side.
Mae Wadyka came into the game as a pinch runner for Gates and swiped Army's third bag to put herself in scoring position. She came around to score on a single by Rasheksnas. Back-to-back walks by Swafford and Emily Ballesteros plated another run for the Cadets later in the inning to cap the scoring.
After a quick inning in the field, Army came back up to the plate with Trotter earning a leadoff walk. Two consecutive hits by Ontiveros and Wadyka brought the rookie around the bases.
The Black Knights notched their final run of the contest with an RBI single by Ontiveros that scored Trotter in the sixth.

LINEUP BREAKDOWN vs. LEHIGH
Rashenskas (2B): 1-for-4
Swafford (LF): 1-for-4

McKinney (PR): N/A

Ballesteros (3B): 1-for-4 with a run scored
Trotter (RF): 2-for-3 with a run scored
Hartman (C/DP): 1-for-2 with a walk and a run scored
Wadyka (CF): 0-for-3
Ontiveros (1B): 0-for-1 with an RBI
Harrison (SS): 1-for-3
Yoo (DP): 0-for-2

Kim (C): 0-for-1

Smith (P): 6.0 innings, six hits, three runs (earned), five walks and two strikeouts
West (P): 1.0 inning, one hit, two runs (earned), one walk and 0 strikeouts

FACTS & FIGURES

Army scored three runs on seven hits and were perfect in the field, while Lehigh earned five runs on seven hits and committed one error.

HOW IT HAPPENED vs. LEHIGH

Army opened the scoring in the bottom of the second inning that began with a leadoff double by Sam Hartman. She advanced to third on a ground out before scoring on a sacrifice fly by Ontiveros.
Lehigh threatened in the top of the next inning as it loaded the bases, but Caroline Smith and the Black Knights held them off the scoreboard.
The Black Knights carried that momentum off the defensive stop into the home half of the inning to add some insurance runs to their lead. After two quick outs, Army strung together two hits and a walk to load the bases for Wadyka. She reached on a defensive error by the Mountain Hawks, allowing Ballesteros and Trotter to score on the play.
Lehigh managed to tie the game in the fifth on a bases-clearing double by Viicky Lattanzio. She put Lehigh ahead in the seventh with a two-run home run to right center.