Syracuse leaves too many runners on base in 7-4 loss to Louisville
With one out and the bases loaded, Faith Cain ripped a line drive towards the gap between third base and shortstop. Louisville shortstop Caitlin Ferguson snagged the screamer as momentum brought her toward third base, she fired the ball toward third before Alicia Hansen could dive back to the bag.
What originally appeared to be a hot start for the Orange, ended with three runners stranded on base.
“If (Cain) hits that one way or another, maybe a foot another way, that would’ve been double,” Hansen said. “So It’s just unlucky hitting”
Syracuse (17-10, 3-4 Atlantic Coast) failed to take advantage of runners in scoring position on Friday in its 7-4 loss to Louisville (19-8, 4-0). The Orange tallied eight hits, the same amount as the Cardinals, but failed to capitalize at the right moments. Syracuse stranded eight runners, three less than Louisville’s 11 runners left on base, but still trailed by three at the game’s conclusion. For Syracuse, it wasn’t a lack of opportunities, but rather a lack of execution.
“The game is about timely hitting,” Syracuse head coach Mike Bosch said. “We rely upon that a little bit. We tried to put people in motion, bunted a couple times, but when it comes down to it when we have people in scoring position we just need to hit it.”
Syracuse broke through for a run just once in the first six innings. But even after Alicia Hansen, who batted 3-4 with two RBI’s, knocked home Sammy Fernandez, the Orange failed to build off the success. Hansen remained on first while the Orange’s heart of the lineup approached the plate.
Sydney O’hara smacked an outside pitch opposite field to Louisville’s Jordan McNary. Once again just before the ball landed for a base hit a Louisville defender swooped in, snow-coning the ball with her glove. Holmgren flied out to left field on the next at bat, and Syracuse left another runner on base.
“I think it’s more motivation for me when people are on base,” Hansen said. “It’s more of an incentive to get a hit when other people are on base.”
The Orange tried to manufacture a run in the fourth. Jessica Heese singled up the middle to reach first with one out. Hannah Dossett followed with a sacrifice bunt which moved Heese to second. With two outs and a runner on second, Bosch pinch hit for Olivia Martinez. But the result was the same. Rachel Burkhardt grounded out to shortstop as Syracuse clung to a one-run lead.
In the sixth, failure to advance bases continued even when given the opportunity. With one out, Heese hit what appeared to be a sacrifice fly to deep center. As Louisville center fielder Nicole Pufahl corralled the fly ball, O’Hara and Cain remained on their bases. The same location they would stand moments later as a Hannah Dossett pop up left the two base-runners stranded.
Even when Syracuse broke through in the final frame for three runs, none were earned. Fernandez reached on an error and eventually scored on what should have been the last out of the game. Alison Szydlowski bobbled a Bryce Holmgren ground ball to keep the Orange alive.
“Even being in the seventh inning we are going to fight,” Hansen said. “No matter what the score is we can be down 10 or up whatever it is we are going to fight. We aren’t going lose by more than four runs”
Holmgren never reached home though, and the Orange failed to complete the comeback. The game ended on a Heese strikeout, with two Syracuse players stuck on the base paths.