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After getting Syracuse on the board by driving in two runs in the first inning, Madelyn Lopez stepped back into the batter’s box in the second inning. Shaking the bat slightly with a glance to Georgia Tech’s starting pitcher Blake Neleman, Lopez ripped a line drive single to center field, bringing home Rebecca Clyde and Angel Jasso giving the Orange a 5-0 lead.

In its third game of the week, Syracuse (16-14, 4-8, Atlantic Coast Conference) topped Georgia Tech (23-15, 9-7, ACC) 7-1. Lopez led the Orange’s offense with four RBIs, shedding light on Syracuse’s improved batting performance in which the team totaled nine hits.

After the Yellow Jackets were held scoreless in the top of the first inning, Lopez led off the Orange’s batting feast of the day. Following a leadoff single from Jasso to left, Lopez stepped up to the plate. Then, she bombed a homer beyond the right-field fence, giving SU a quick 2-0 lead.

Georgia Tech responded to Syracuse’s quick lead by retiring the next five hitters consecutively. But with two outs in the bottom of the second inning, Clyde kept the inning alive with a single. Then, Neleman walked Syracuse’s first baseman Tessa Galipeau which advanced Clyde to second.

Jasso kept the two-out rally alive, reaching on a two-base error that scored Clyde and brought Tessa to third. Taking advantage of the error, Lopez drove in two more runs, giving the Orange a 5-0 lead.

“I think everyone was confident in the box,” Lopez said.

In the fifth inning and Syracuse now leading 5-1, it tried extending its lead. As Taylor Posner took first base after being hit by GT reliever Makayla Coffield, Kelly Breen laced a single that snuck its way into left field. On the play, Posner advanced to second. Then, SU catcher Laila Morales-Alves drilled a double adding two RBIs, extending the Orange’s lead to 7-1.

In the sixth inning, Clyde and Jasso both reached base and Lopez came to the plate with one out. Though Lopez notched her third hit of the game, Clyde was held at third base. With the bases loaded, Posner and Breen each popped out, but the Orange still secured a 7-1 win backed by a dominant pitching effort to go along with Lopez’s big day at the plate.

In the third inning, starting pitcher Madison Knight struggled to cope with batters when she walked two Yellow Jackets consecutively. After a short timeout, she fought back regaining her strength, striking out the next two batters and forcing a flyout to save the team in this inning.

Despite being replaced by Julianna Verni due to walk trouble later on, Verni carried on the pitch calmly like she did yesterday. With Georgia Tech’s Reece Hunter and Sara Beth Allen on the base, she struck out Paige Vukadinovich to clear the danger. Between Knight and Verni, the pitchers only allowed five opposing hitters to reach base.

“(I) try to stay calm in the game (and) stay confident,” Verni said. “We knew going into the series that Georgia Tech was a powerful team in terms of offensive performance. So just keeping the ball in the zone (and) trying to limit any locks and freebies as much as possible.”

Published on March 30, 2024 at 2:55 pm