By. Nick Konotopskyj
Assistant Sports Editor
The softball team gave its fans something to be excited about in the past week.
Two of its last three wins have come in walk-off fashion, including Wednesday afternoon when sophomore outfielder Desiree Gonzalez lined a single into right center field to drive in the game-winning run against Fordham.
“I just thought this was my time because I didn’t get a hit all day,” Gonzalez said. “I knew I had to show up for the team and do it for them, so I was just up there confident and swung the bat.”
The Bonnies split a doubleheader against Fordham and took two out of three games against George Mason last weekend, giving them three wins in their last five games, improving their record to 9-16 (5-7 in A10).
Both walk-off wins were in comeback fashion as the Bonnies found themselves down 7-5 going into the last inning against George Mason and down 3-0 going into the sixth inning against Fordham.
Gonzalez ended up going 2 for 7 from the plate for both games including the game-winning single, but despite the win, she knows that they let the first game get away.
“I think for the first game, we kind of got a little out of control after the fifth inning and they jumped on us,” Gonzalez said. “But we came in very confident in the second game and we did what we had to do; everyone got their base hits and made plays.”
In that first game, the teams were tied at two a piece until Fordham broke the game open with seven runs in the sixth inning.
The mood from the team after the game was positive, according to junior shortstop Emily McDonough.
“We are happy with a split because we haven’t beat Fordham for as long as I can remember,” McDonough said. “I think it was huge that we came back from losing the first game and got a win, especially an exciting win like that.”
McDonough, just like Gonzalez, went 2 for 7 on the day and placed down a sacrifice bunt in the last frame to put the winning run in scoring position, which Gonzalez eventually knocked in two batters later.
Up next for the Bonnies is a trip to the University of Massachusetts for a three-game weekend series. The doubleheader begins Saturday at 12 pm, then the final game of the series can be seen Sunday afternoon at 12pm.
Now that the softball team is more than halfway through its season, the players understand that now is the time to stay focused if they want to compete in the Atlantic 10, according to McDonough.
“I think if we just keep playing the way we are, stay motivated, and believe in ourselves, I think we will have no problem staying in contention for the A 10,” McDonough said.
The next home games for the Bonnies will take place in a doubleheader against Niagara on Tuesday, April 21.
This weekend the Bonnies will see if they can bring some of their walk-off magic on the road to Massachusetts.
