Castronovo Leads Corban to Sweep of Whitworth
BOX SCORES – GAME #1 | GAME #2
PASCO, Wash. – After a 10-day break from competition due to the weather throughout the Willamette Valley, Corban's softball team returned to action and swept NCAA Division III member Whitworth, 13-11 in eight innings and 13-1 in five innings, Tuesday at TRAC Fields in the Tri-Cities area.
Freshman Courtney Castronovo (Salem, Ore.) went a combined 6-for-7 at the plate with three runs scored to lead Corban, while sophomore Stephanie Nippert (Rocklin, Calif.) and junior Emma Winckler (Eltopia, Wash.) each collected four hits in the afternoon. Nippert belted her team-leading sixth and seventh home run of the year, while Castronovo connected on her first collegiate home run in the opener.
In the circle for Corban, senior Makenzie Marchbanks (Sweet Home, Ore.) went the opening 2.0 innings in Game #1 allowing seven runs (four earned) on four hits before giving way to junior Brittany Wagner (Oregon City, Ore.) for the final 6.0 innings. The third-year right-hander allowed four runs (three earned) on seven hits en route to picking up her second win of the season. In the night cap, Winckler went the distance allowing one earned run on four hits with a game-high six strikeouts as she picked up her second win this year.
GAME #1 – CORBAN 13, WHITWORTH 11 (8 INNINGS)
In the opener, Corban scored at least one run in seven-out-of-eight innings and overcame a 7-2 deficit heading into the top of the third inning en route to picking up a 13-11 come-from-behind win in extra innings.
The visiting Warriors got on the board first in their opening at-bat via Nippert's sixth home run of the season, as Corban grabbed an early 1-0 lead.
After watching Whitworth put four runs on the board in the bottom of the first, Corban added another run via a RBI single by freshman Julia Quiring (Independence, Ore.) that cut the Warriors' deficit in half (4-2).
In the bottom of the second inning, Whitworth put three more runs on the board en route to grabbing a quick five-run lead (7-2) after its first two at-bats.
The top of the third inning was where Corban began its comeback, as the visiting Warriors scored four runs via a RBI double by sophomore Rachel Conard (Merlin, Ore.) and three run-scoring singles by sophomore Erica Fitzgerald (Beaverton, Ore.), sophomore Shauna Boudreaux (Donald, Ore.), and Quiring that made the score 7-6 after two-and-a-half innings of play.
Corban would tie the game at 7-7 in the top of the fourth inning when Winckler singled to open the inning before advancing on a Nippert hit by pitch. One batter later with Winckler on third, Whitworth unleashed a wild pitch that brought the first-year Warrior home with the game-tying run.
In the top of the fifth inning, Castronovo gave Corban its second lead of the game via her first collegiate home run to make the score 8-7 in favor of the visiting team.
Whitworth would re-take the lead in the bottom of the fifth inning thanks to a pair of RBI hits that made the score 9-8 in favor of the Pirates.
In its next-to-last at-bat, Corban knotted the game once again at 9-all thanks to a run-scoring single by Fitzgerald that brought Nippert home following her two out single.
After neither team scored in the seventh inning, the game went to extra frames as the International tie-breaker rule was used with each team placing a runner on second base to open the inning.
In Corban's half of the eighth inning, Nippert began the Warriors' scoring via a sacrifice fly before Castronovo came through with a bases-clearing, three-run double one batter later that turned out to be the eventual game-winning runs thanks to a 13-9 lead.
Whitworth would attempt a comeback in the bottom of the eighth inning, as the Pirates scored two runs via a run-scoring double but Wagner got three infield outs en route to Corban picking up the victory, 13-11.
The host Pirates were led offensively by Ally Noble with a 3-for-5 performance that included three runs batted in, while Heather Hesselgesser also added three RBI. In the circle, Emily Anderson went the opening 2.2 innings for the Pirates allowing six earned runs on seven hits before turning the ball over to Jessica Mangis for the final 5.1 innings allowing seven runs (five earned) on eight hits en route to suffering the loss.
GAME #2 – CORBAN 13, WHITWORTH 1 (5 INNINGS)
The night cap would belong to Corban from its opening at-bat, as the Warriors put 10 runs on the board in the top of the first inning with Nippert provided the highlight via a three-run home run before junior Abbie Pynch (Stayton, Ore.) added a two-run double and Conard provided a two-out, three-run double that capped the scoring.
Corban would push its lead to 11 runs in the top of the third inning, as Conard drove in her fourth run of the game via a double that brought home Winckler for an 11-0 Warrior lead.
Freshman Lounette Jackson (Escalon, Calif.) would help Corban increased its lead once again in the top of the fourth inning, as she registered a two-run double that scored Boudreaux and Castronovo for a 13-0 lead for the visiting team.
Whitworth would finally get on the board in the bottom of the fourth inning thanks to a RBI ground out, but the damage was already done as Corban secured a 10-run mercy-rule victory to close out the afternoon double header.
Six Warriors – Pynch, Winckler, Conard, Castronovo, Boudreaux, and Jackson – each collected two hits on the afternoon, while Nippert provided the night cap's highlight with her first inning home run that turned out to be her only hit in Game #2. Conard registered a team-high four RBI, while Nippert and Jackson each drove in three runs to go along with two RBI by Pynch.
Whitworth's offense came from the bat of Kelsey Ayers, as she registered two of the Pirates' four hits in the night cap. Jessica Dickson went the opening 0.2 innings for Whitworth allowing eight runs (seven earned) on seven hits before Taylor Gilbert took over and pitched the final 4.1 innings.
With today's sweep, Corban evens its record at 7-7 and Whitworth falls to 2-10 on the season. The Warriors will be back in action on Wednesday, March 9th, in a newly added double header against NCAA Division II member Western Oregon beginning at 1:00 p.m. on Warrior Field in Salem.