Lauren Boone

Staff Writer

The Bison traveled to Washington, D.C. to compete in the Colonial Classic this past weekend, coming away with a 4-3 win against George Washington, a 4-0 shutout over Seton Hall and a 4-2 loss to the Pirates. The two wins brought the Orange and the Blue’s overall record to 3-8.

The Bison pulled out their second win of the season in an eight-inning game against tournament host George Washington on March 1. It was the fourth extra-inning game of the season for the Bison. Due to the international tiebreaker rule, Mariah Midyette ’16 started off on second base. Thanks to a sacrifice bunt from Cheyanna Young ’16, Midyette was able to advance to third. Mallory Lyons ’14 hit the game-winning single in the top of the eighth inning to send Midyette home and defeat the Colonials.

Dana Nielsen ’16 took the win for the Orange and the Blue. She served as the relief pitcher for 2.2 innings without giving up a walk or a hit.

After several postponed and cancelled games due to darkness, the Orange and Blue were finally able to get back on the field on March 3 for a split doubleheader against Seton Hall. The Bison lost the first game, which they entered trailing 4-0 in the fourth inning, but Courtney Conover ’14 had a strong game, scoring both Bison runs with a home run in the seventh inning.

Although the Orange and Blue could only string together two runs in the first game, they were able to put four runs on the scoreboard in the second game, which was ended after five innings due to darkness.

Cydnee Sanders ’15 singled to get on base, then advanced to second on a base hit from Erin Cox ’15. Sanders scored the first run in the first inning, coming home on a wild pitch. The Bison scored their second run of the game in the fourth inning, when Young drew a leadoff walk, and then pinch runner Caryn Connors ’14 came home on Conover’s double to right center field.

The Bison scored their final two runs of the game in the fifth inning before the darkness set in. Cox singled to get on base, then scored due to fielder’s choice. Conover helped score another run due to another fielder’s choice.

“The tournament this weekend went pretty well for the team aside from all the field complications we experienced,” Conover said. “Aside from the one loss, the team worked extremely hard and got the bats rolling in our games against Seton Hall. Communication was a major aspect of our success this past weekend. It was exciting to finally beat a team that Bucknell has never beaten in past years. The team is really coming together as a unit.”

Nielsen (1-3) took the loss from the first game, while Amanda Fazio ’16 (2-4) took the win in the nightcap. Fazio pitched her first career shutout, only allowing nine hits and four runners in scoring position.

The Orange and Blue will travel to Texas and Louisiana to compete in several games over Spring Break. They will play Houston Baptist (March 11), Lamar (March 12), McNeese State (March 13), Prairie View A&M (March 15) and Texas Southern (March 16).