Thunderwolves move to .500 after pair of wins at Monroe Tuesday
*** PHOTO COURTESY OF GEOFF SCHNEIDER (GMSPHOTOWNY) ***
SUNY Niagara improved to .500 on the season with a pair of NJCAA Region III wins against Monroe Community College Tuesday in Rochester. The Thunderwolves won the first meeting in seven innings, 16-11, followed by an 11-3 victory in five innings.
The victories against the Tribunes resulted in SUNY Niagara's fourth sweep in regional play this season (SUNY Adirondack April 4, Finger Lakes Community College April 15, Onondaga Community College April 19). Ranked fourth in the NJCAA Region III Softball Coaches Poll for a second straight week on April 17, the Thunderwolves are now 10-1 when they score at least 10 runs in a contest this season.
SUNY Niagara is now 12-12 overall and 11-4 in NJCAA Region III action. This is currently the Thunderwolves’ first 10-win season since 2023 and the fourth this decade (11 in 2021, 31 in 2022, 26 in 2023).
Weather permitting, SUNY Niagara hosts an NJCAA Region III doubleheader versus Erie Community College Friday in Sanborn. First pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m.
Game One: SUNY Niagara 16, Monroe Community College 11, Final, 7 Innings
A one-run triple from Miranda Shingleton, who later scored on a wild pitch, and a one-run walk from Molly Syposs helped SUNY Niagara take a 3-0 lead in the first. The Thunderwolves later scored four in the second as Shingleton, Syposs and Gianna Simone delivered one run each during the sequence (7-0 SUNY Niagara).
Monroe scored five in the bottom of the second and cut the deficit to 7-5. But the Thunderwolves added six more in the top of the fourth (13-5), thanks to two-run singles each from Lauren Kisloski and Mia Herman and a two-run double from Quinn Manth.
SUNY Niagara then held onto a 13-9 lead after the fifth before it added three more in the sixth. Manth had a two-run single and Shingleton had a RBI groundout.
Both Manth and Shingleton went 3-for-5 at the plate and scored twice. Manth drove in a team-high four runs and Shingleton sent home three.
Herman went 2-for-3, delivered two runs and scored three times. Kisloski (2 RBI), Syposs, Grace Schindler, Emmilie Sypherd (three runs) and Caitlyn Hanley (two runs) recorded one hit apiece.
Hanley also threw all seven innings and allowed 10 earned runs on 13 hits. Hanley also recorded three strikeouts and five walks on 144 pitches (82 strikes).
Game Two: SUNY Niagara 11, Monroe Community College 3, Final, 5 Innings
SUNY Niagara erased a 3-0 deficit after two innings and didn't look back. The Thunderwolves scored four runs in the bottom of the third, which included Hanley's bases-clearing two-run triple.
Hanley later recorded a two-run single in the fourth and Kisloski added a one-run double and gave SUNY Niagara an 8-3 lead. The Thunderwolves scored three more times in the bottom of the fifth as Miranda Shingleton had a RBI walk, Syposs had a fielder's choice groundout and Manth scored her third and final run of the game.
Hanley finished a team-best 2-for-3 at the plate, drove in four runs and scored twice. Kisloski, Herman and Simone (RBI) recorded one hit each.
Syposs and Miranda Shingleton drove in a run and scored twice. Herman and Simone scored once each.
Marissa Shingleton threw all five innings and allowed three runs on nine hits, struck out two and walked two (79 pitches total, 50 strikes).