The Bison softball team leads the Patriot League as the only remaining undefeated team in league play at 6-0. With a three-game sweep of Colgate from April 1-2, the Orange and Blue improved their overall record to 21-5, their best start since 1993.

The Orange and Blue shut out Colgate with a 3-0 win in the first game of the weekend. Raeanne Geffert ’20 pitched her first shutout of the season and was named Patriot League Pitcher and Rookie of the Week for her performance. She leads all pitchers in the league with 77 strikeouts this season. The Bison’s defense was strong this weekend as well, leaving three Colgate runners stranded on third base during the course of the game.

Offensively, the Bison had seven hits, including singles by Meghan Kovac ’18, Marisa Alemany ’20, Carolyn Wan ’17, Anna Gimmestad ’19, and Christina Martinez ’17.

The second game of the series brought even better results for the Bison with a 7-0 shutout. Lara Bean ’17 pitched a complete game-shutout while stranding 10 runners and striking out two. The Bison led early thanks to a four-run second inning. The offensive outburst was led by Lauren Hadley ’19, who hit a two-run home run over the center field fence, her second of the season, sparking a three-run fifth inning. The strong output was also bolstered by Gimmestad, who had a 3-for-3 day with a double and two singles. Adding to the score were Halie Mariano ’20 with a single, Celina Antonellis ’18 with a single, Chaylen Andolino ’17 with a single and a double, and Martinez with another double.

Geffert led the Bison to victory in the circle once again in the third game of the weekend. She has won her past eight pitching appearances and hasn’t suffered a loss in 12 straight games. The Bison had only four hits, each of which translated into a run: a single from Hadley, a double by Andolino, and a two-run single from Kovac. Their efficient offensive performance secured the three-game sweep of Colgate.

“We had a little bit of a slow start in the first game against Colgate, but we did what we needed to do to allow us to sweep them,” Hadley said.

“The team has really excelled on the defensive side of things. We were able to handle a strong Colgate offense, which allowed us to play the game the way we wanted to from a hitting standpoint,” Antonellis said.

The Bison’s .963 defensive fielding record is currently ranked second in the Patriot League. The defense has only committed one error in the six league games that the Orange and Blue have played so far.

“As we move forward with the season, we want to focus on trusting the process we worked hard to build up ever since the fall. When we’ve played our game, we’ve been successful,” Mariano said.

The Bison will look to continue their undefeated streak in league play April 8-9, when they visit Bethlehem, Pa. for a three-game series against Lehigh. Lehigh is the defending Patriot League champion and was projected to win the league again in preseason polls.