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Locked into a pitcher’s duel, Madison Knight had an uphill battle to keep the game scoreless in the third inning. After retiring five straight Jacksonville batters, Madison Bratek, the ninth hitter in the lineup, stepped up to the plate.

On the first pitch of the at bat, Bratek hit the ball to third baseman Rebecca Clyde, who couldn’t field the ball cleanly. Following the leadoff error, Bratek stole second base, giving JU a runner in scoring position with no outs. Facing the top of the order, Knight forced Victoria Rodebaugh to line out. However, after Madison Reynolds worked a 3-2 count, she singled up the middle and Bratek advanced to third base.

Against the heart of Jacksonville’s order, Knight forced Allison Bratek and Joely Leguizamon to ground out. Backed by Knight’s two-way stardom and its offensive power, Syracuse (2-1, 0-0 Atlantic Coast) beat Jacksonville (3-1, 0-0 Atlantic Sun) 5-2. 

Until Knight stepped up to the plate in the fourth inning with one out, SU was held hitless and its only base runner was Knight who walked in the first inning. Despite being down in the count 1-2, Knight ripped a double down the line giving Laila Alves a great opportunity to drive her in.

On Emma Whitfield’s first pitch to Alves, she hit a weak pop-up to Rodebaugh at third base. With two outs and Knight still at second base, Kelly Breen was tasked with driving in the game’s first run with two outs in the top of the fourth inning. However, like Alves, Breen couldn’t drive Knight in as she flew out to end the inning. 

After Knight retired all three Jacksonville hitters in the bottom of the inning, SU looked to build off of its scoring threat in the fifth inning. In an 0-1 count to lead off the inning, Taylor Posner sent a deep fly ball over the left field wall putting Syracuse on the board. 

Following Posner’s home run, Ryan Gallegos worked a one-out walk, but Syracuse couldn’t string together anything else offensively. As she did in the fourth, Knight made quick work of Jacksonville’s lineup in the fifth inning, recording her second consecutive 1-2-3 inning. 

Looking to add insurance runs in the sixth inning, Jude Padilla led off the inning with a single. With Knight stepping up to the plate, Ryan Starr replaced Padilla as a pinch runner and quickly stole second base. Knight, after working a full count, drew her second walk of the game giving Syracuse runners on first and second base with no outs. 

Shannon Doepking opted to pinch hit Yamila Evans for Alves. On Whitfield’s 2-2 pitch to Evans, she drilled a home run to left-center field giving the Orange a 4-0 lead and much-needed insurance runs.

In the bottom of the sixth inning, Knight struggled with her command. After she fell behind Reynolds 3-1, Reynolds ripped a lead-off double to right field. Although she managed to get a first-pitch ground ball out against Bratek, Knight proceeded to walk Leguizamon on four pitches. 

With runners on the corners and one out, Lindsey Chadwick put the ball in play. Reynolds easily scored from third base, but an errant throw ensued chaos on the bases. The throw allowed Chadwick to advance to second base and Leguizamon tried to score all the way from first base, but SU got her out at the plate for the second out of the inning.

Despite pitching over five innings with five strikeouts, Lindsey Hendrix replaced Knight on the hill. On Hendrix’s first pitch of the game, Allison Carter ripped a line drive into center field for an RBI. With Jacksonville only trailing by two, Madison Kennedy stepped up to the plate, but Hendrix forced her to line out ending the inning. 

In the top of the seventh with two outs and Angel Jasso on second base, Knight stepped up to the plate. On a 2-2 pitch, Knight hit an opposite field single giving Syracuse a 5-2 lead. In the bottom half of the inning, looking to close out the game, Hendrix retired Hallie Kern then walked Bradek and Rodebaugh consecutively to bring up the tying run. Despite JU’s threat, Hendrix initiated a double play securing Syracuse’s second win of the season.

Published on February 12, 2023 at 6:27 pm

Contact Justin: justingirshon@gmail.com | @JustinGirshon