Box Score
ITHACA, N.Y. - #24 Ithaca quieted #21 Lebanon Valley's bats as it won, 3-1, in an NCAA Regional game on Friday.
Lebanon Valley drops into the loser's bracket and faces King's on Saturday at noon in an elimination game; King's won 12-9 in a slugfest with Keuka on Friday.
The Bombers (32-13) racked up nine hits and took advantage of three errors by the Dutchmen (32-12). Ithaca advances to the regional semifinal to face Empire 8 rival Alfred on Saturday.
Val Malizzia (16-5) took the loss as she allowed all three runs (one earned) in five innings of work;
Laura Snyder replaced her in the sixth and worked out of two jams without surrendering another run. Malizzia posted four strikeouts in the game, while Snyder notched three.
Alyssa Brook two-hit LVC, striking out five in a seven-inning effort.
Ithaca struck early, scoring a run in the opening frame. Kait Dolan led off with a walk and advanced to second off a sacrifice bunt. Kerry Barger hit a two-out single to left to score the run, while a strikeout ended the inning.
In the first, sophomore
Kerri Datres reached base after being hit by a pitch. A sacrifice bunt from
Kristen Palmerio and a fly out by
Meghan Donoghue moved Datres to third, but Brook ended the inning with a groundout.
The Bombers tacked on two more runs in the fourth inning. Barger reached first after a throwing error and moved to third on a single through the ride side from Jennifer Biondi. A throwing error from third to second base scored Barger and advanced Biondi to second. A sacrifice bunt from Allison Greaney scored the inning's other run.
LVC's responded with a run scoring on back-to-back one-out doubles by Donoghue and
Katie Freeman in the bottom of the inning. Two groundouts ended the inning, leaving Freeman on third.
The Bombers loaded the bases with one out in the fifth, but a strikeout by Malizzia ended the inning. Snyder found herself in the same jam the following inning, posting three-straight outs to strand the runners in the base paths.
Ithaca could have broken the game open several times but left the bases loaded in each of the last three innings as they stranded 11 overall.
