The Seton Hall softball team started its 2018 season by splitting a doubleheader on Friday, defeating the Abilene Christian Wildcats 2-0 and later falling to the Texas A&M Corpus Christi Islanders 3-2 in what was the first day of the UTSA Softball Classic in San Antonio, Texas.
Game one of the doubleheader ended as a dominant win by the Pirates. Seton Hall was led by sophomore pitcher Reganne Camp, who fired a four-hit complete game shutout. It was an all-out effort for Camp, as she threw 112 pitches and struck out 10 in her second career shutout. She did not allow a walk in the win.
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Photo via SHU Athletics[/caption]
The Seton Hall offense scored all of their runs in the first inning, starting with an Alexis Walkden double to left. The double for Walkden was a special one as it was the 37th of her career and made her third in career doubles in program history. She was driven in later in the first by Hailey Arteaga, who slammed the first Pirate home run of the season.
The Pirate offense was quiet for the rest of the game outside of a pair of singles off the bats of Sara Foster and Darby Pandolfo.
In game two against the Islanders, the Pirates held the lead for most of the game until a sixth inning when they gave up two runs. Seton Hall struck first again following a three-hit first inning. It started with Walkden, who singled and stole second. She later scored on an Alyssa Prukop single up the middle.
The Islanders tied up the game in the fourth with a lead-off home run from left fielder Keagan Helson, but the Pirates retook the lead in the fifth, following another Arteaga home run. However, this time, the home run was only a solo shot, meaning the Pirates were only in front by one. The offense could not get a run across the plate after that.
Texas A&M Corpus Christi started its sixth inning off with Kaylon Dunn, who reached on an error by Walkden. After an Islander double put two runners in scoring position, Taelor Thomas drove them in with a double of her own and gave the Islanders a 3-2 lead.
Seton Hall pitcher Madison Strunk started the game for the Pirates and threw four innings, only surrendering three hits, one earned run, and one walk, while striking out two. Chrisa Head took over on the mound after her and threw three innings, giving up three hits and two runs; with one of them earned. Head was the losing pitcher in the Pirates’ first loss of the season.
The Pirates will continue their pursuit of wins in the UTSA Softball Classic with another doubleheader on Saturday. That doubleheader will begin with a rematch against the Islanders at 3 p.m., and then a game against the UTSA Roadrunners at 8 p.m.
Jose Feliciano can be reached at jose.felicano@student.shu.edu or on Twitter @JFeliciano1101.
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