Box score

Ewing, NJ...The College of New Jersey softball team rebounded from its first-round loss to defeat Ramapo College 4-1 in the second round of the 2010 New Jersey Athletic Conference Tournament.

The Lions (31-7) received clutch performances from a pair of seniors as Ashley Minervini (Cliffside Park, NJ/Cliffside Park) provide a sterling effort on the mound and Dani Hagel (Egg Harbor City, NJ/Oakcrest) ripped two doubles, a single, and drove in three runs. TCNJ advances to take on Rowan University at noon tomorrow. The Profs squandered a one-run lead in the ninth as they lost to Kean on a game-winning single.

Minervini struck out a season-high 10 batters en route to her 15th win of the season. The right-hander scattered six and walked none

After two scoreless innings, TCNJ's offense came to life to plate a pair of runs. Freshman Ashely Sogluizzo (Middletown, NJ/Middletown South) stroked a one-double to left and came home when senior Ellen Seavers (Ridgewood, NJ/Ridgewood) ripped a base hit to left field giving the Lions their first lead of the tournament. Hagel followed with a double off the fence in left field scoring Seavers to stretch the lead to 2-0.

The Roadrunners threatened in the third with a double and infield single off the bats of Kelsey Higgins (Wall, NJ/Wall) and Katie Donnelly (North Haledon, NJ/Eastern Christian), but Minervini responded with a strikeout and a groundout to thwart the Ramapo rally.

Ramapo cut the lead in half when shortstop Tiffany Fischer (Woodcliff Lake, NJ/Pascack Hills) belted an RBI double to left-center field. With the tying run on second, Minervini got the strikeout she needed to escape any more damage.

TCNJ struck back as freshman Kelly Hommen (Ridgewood, NJ/Ridgewood) led off the fifth with a clean single to center field and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by Seavers. Hagel then launched her second, run-scoring double of the game to center field to increase the lead to 3-1.

Hagel came up with a runner on third in the seventh and provided an insurance run lacing a ball through the middle to make it a 4-1 game.

Ramapo was eliminated from the NJAC tournament with the loss and finished the season with an overall record of 27-15. 

Richard Stockton 4  William Paterson University 1 Box Score

Richard Stockton College advanced to the winner's bracket final game of the NJAC tournament as they defeated William Paterson University 4-1. The Ospreys will play Kean University Saturday at 10 a.m. in the winner's bracket final. The winner will advance to the championship round.

 The Pioneers were eliminated finishing their season at 26-15-1.

Stockton (23-13) pounded out 11 hits, scoring runs in the fourth, fifth, and sixth innings. Starting pitcher Jaime Gasko (Cinnaminson, NJ/Cinnaminson) kept the Pioneer offense in check throughout the game. The sophomore earned her second victory in the NJAC tournament scattering seven hits, while striking out six.

The game remained scoreless through three innings as William Paterson pitcher Michele Graham (Hawthorne, NJ/Hawthorne) and Gasko were locked in a pitcher's duel.

Danielle Accardi (East Brunswick, NJ/Mount St. Mary) led off the fourth with a base hit to right field and Kelly Dodd (Linwood, NJ/Mainland) followed with a line drive base hit to left field. Jessica Sneddon (Nutley, NJ/Nutley) then cracked the seal on the game lacing a single to left-center to take a 1-0 lead.

The Ospreys tacked on two more in the fifth on four base hits. Dodd drove in a pair with her second hit of the day and Stockton was in command of the game. Joey Afflitto (Brick, NJ/Brick) doubled to right-center in the fifth to drive in Stockton's fourth run of the game.

William Paterson put together a rally in the seventh with three singles. Christina Zippler (Blackwood, NJ/Washington Twp.) scored on a Casey Sierra (Ringwood, NJ/Lakeland Regional) base hit, but Gasko to get a fly out to right field to end the game. 

Kean University 4 Rowan University 3    Box Score

Late-game drama was the story in the third game of the day at Lions' Park as Kean University rallied to score two runs with two outs to steal a 4-3 win over Rowan University.

The fifth-seeded Cougars (26-14) will now play sixth-seeded Richard Stockton College at 10:00 a.m. tomorrow in the winner's bracket final. The #3 Profs will match up against #1 TCNJ at noon.

Senior Cassie Shotwell (Dunellen, NJ/Dunellen) hit a two-out, game-winning single to centerfield to cap off Kean's comeback win. Shotwell'ls game-winner was set up when Allison Lizzi (Cherry Hill, NJ/Cherry Hill West) doubled off the fence in left-center to score Allison Thibault (Garfield, NJ/Garfield) who had walked.

Shotwell also earned the mound decision going the distance while striking out eight to earn her 15th win of the season.

The Cougars manufactured a run in the first to take a quick 1-0 lead. Kennedy, who walked to lead off the inning, scored on an RBI groundout rom Shotwell.

Rowan erupted for three runs on five hits in the third, highlighted by Nicolina Veniziano's (Bloomfield, NJ/Bloomfield) two-run single to left field. Steph Taraschi (Mt. Ephraim, NJ/Audubon) also produced a run-scoring single in the inning.

Sophomore Jaime Minix (Clarksboro, NJ/Kingsway Reg.) dominated the Cougar lineup early on allowing just one hit through the first four innings. But Kean heated up in the fifth stringing together three, two-out hits off the bats of Lindsey Kennedy (Parsipanny, NJ/Parsippany), Lizzi, and Katie Yard (Hillsborough, NJ/Hillsborough) to cut the lead to 3-2.

Lizzi and Yard finished with two hits and Shotwell drove in a pair.

Taraschi had two hits  for Rowan and reached base in all four plate appearances.