Seton Hall
Pirates Squeak Past Buffalo, 2-0
Date: March 5, 2018By: Dalton Allison
On the back of starter Madison Strunk, the Seton Hall Pirates were able to come away with a victory Sunday against the Buffalo Bulls by a score of 2-0.
Entering the game with a 2-1 record, Strunk knew she would need to provide a solid pitching performance in order to relieve a Pirate squad that put up offense all weekend. She turned in seven shutout innings for her team, even throwing in a strikeout.
The offense of the Pirates started early, striking in the first inning. After Janae Barracato smacked a double, Payton Beaver delivered a double of her own to put the Pirates on the board.
It would take until the fourth inning for Strunk to allow a hit, and that was when Anna Aguon doubled with one away. Strunk would not let this disrupt her focus however, as she finished off the next two batters to retire the side.
To see Strunk having pitching success was not a surprise to the Pirate faithful, as the staff has been strong compared to most of its Big East counterparts. Their ERA of 4.99 is good for fourth in the conference, following only Providence, Creighton, and DePaul.
As the game progressed, it seemed as if the momentum was turning in Buffalo's direction. After six straight Pirates were retired in the fifth and sixth innings, Buffalo again was able to get their leadoff hitter on in the sixth inning. As she did all day however, Strunk stayed strong and did not allow the runner to score.
Baylee Allender provided the insurance run in the seventh inning, singling home a run to increase the Pirate advantage to 2-0.
Buffalo attempted to muster a two out rally in the bottom half of the seventh inning. After two runners were able to reach base, Alissa Karjill stepped up to the plate. She drove a ball to deep center, but it was tracked down by Barracato to end the game.
On the day, the Hall finished with seven hits, including two doubles from Barracato. The win over Buffalo concluded a successful weekend in Madeira Beach that saw the Pirates finish with a 4-1 record in the EMU Madeira Beach invitational. Their overall record on the season improved to 11-7.
The Pirates will be back in action on Wednesday, March 7th when the will take on USF in Tampa, Florida. They will stay in Tampa that weekend for another five game slate in the Under Armour Showcase.
Dalton Allison can be reached at dalton.allison@student.shu.edu.
