Colgate Sweeps Bucknell in Friday Doubleheader

Colgate opened its three-game series against Bucknell by taking both ends of Friday’s doubleheader 8-0 and 5-4 at the Eaton Street Softball Complex.

The Raiders racked up 21 hits and rode strong pitching performances across the board to pick up a pair of conference victories. Kara Fusco, Steph Jacoby and Morgan Farrah each registered three hits on the day to lead the offense, while Bailey Misken earned both wins in the circle.

Mia Edwards recorded her second save of the season with two innings of scoreless relief.

Game 1 | Colgate 8, Bucknell 0 (5)

Colgate’s offense overpowered Bucknell in the opening game of the series, and it was the middle of the lineup that provided most of the scoring with runs in the second, third, and fourth frames.

Adrienne Nardone set the tone with a pair of homers in backto-back innings. She accounted for five of Colgate’s first six runs, cranking a two-run homer in the bottom of the second and then one-upping that with a three-run

shot in the third to stretch Colgate’s lead to 6-0.

Each Colgate scoring inning started with a leadoff baserunner. Rebecca Johnson beat out a bunt for a base hit to open the fourth. Johnson scored two batters later when Steph Jacoby roped a two-run triple off the wall to put the Raiders in front 8-0 after four innings.

That was plenty of run support for Bailey Misken, who shut down the Bison in the fifth inning to complete the 8-0 victory. The junior pitcher picked up her sixth win of the season, allowing just two hits while striking out six in the shutout.

Game 2 | Colgate 5, Bucknell 4

A back-and-forth nightcap saw four lead changes and momentum swings throughout the evening. Bucknell scored its first run of the day when Annabella Hawkins worked a basesloaded walk to give the visitors an early 1-0 lead in the top of the second.

Colgate jumped on the board with a pair of runs in the home half of the third. Farrah sparked the rally with an opposite-field single and Fusco drilled a tworun homer — her second in the last three games — to put the Raiders in front 2-1 after three innings.

Bucknell answered right back with two runs on three hits in the top of the fourth. Bella Radicon tied the game with an RBI single up the middle before Hawkins followed up with a go-ahead single to right field and the Bison were back in front 3-2.

The Raiders tied the game in the home half of the fourth on an RBI single from Jillian Herbst before Bucknell regained the lead 4-3 on an RBI double from Zoe Smith in the top of the fifth. Colgate’s pitching duo of Misken and Edwards shut down the Bison the rest of the way.

Back-to-back doubles gave the Raiders the lead for good in the bottom of the fifth. First it was Quinn Livesay down the left field line to score Claire Whalen, and then it was Elizabeth Nitka with a shot to right that scored Rachel Carney and handed Colgate a 5-4 lead.

Edwards escaped jams in the sixth and seventh with some gutsy pitching down the stretch. A pair of walks put the go-ahead run on base and the tying run in scoring position in the seventh, but Edward sealed the deal with a game-ending strikeout to preserve the 5-4 triumph.

UP NEXT

Colgate (16-17, 6-2 Patriot) and Bucknell (5-33, 1-10 Patriot) conclude their weekend series with a single game on Sunday starting at noon. ESPN+ is carrying the livestream.