Golf captures Liberty League title

Skidmore golf’s performance at the Liberty League championships highlighted the spring sports week, as the team locked up the school’s first conference title of the spring. Softball will compete for its league championship for the second consecutive year after a key sweep at Clarkson and women’s lacrosse earned the second seed in the Liberty League playoffs. Baseball had its best conference series of the season, going 3-1, and women’s tennis will begin to defend its Liberty League championship after winning a final tune-up match. Men’s lacrosse saw its season come to a close with a hard-fought defeat at No. 12 Union.

Golf overcame a two-stroke, first-round deficit to win its ninth Liberty League championship by five strokes with score of 312-304—616. Mackenzie Nelson ’17 was the team’s top finisher, tying for third with 77-75—152. He had four birdies, including one on the par-five 17th to help clinch the win. Mitchell Campbell ’17 had a strong second day, registering four birdies and shooting a par-72 to finish tied for sixth with 156. Zach Grossman ’15 used five birdies to save a second-round 78 and tie for 10th with 157. With the win, the team earned an automatic bid into the NCAA Division III tournament May 12-15 in Greensboro, N.C. The Thoroughbreds will be making their 28th NCAA tournament appearance. 

Needing two wins on Saturday to keep its playoff hopes alive, softball delivered with a sweep at Clarkson. In the first game, Amanda Carilli ’18 recorded her third shutout of the season, pitching a complete game and allowing just five hits while striking out three. Dani DeGregory ’16 hit her first collegiate home run, finishing 2-for-4 with two runs and three RBI. Trailing 6-5 in game two, the Thoroughbreds pulled in front with a four-run sixth inning. Mackenzie Whiting ’16 started the rally with a solo home run, Abby Shea ’15 had an RBI triple and DeGregory added an RBI double. Clarkson threatened in the bottom of the seventh, but Carilli stopped the bleeding with a bases-loaded strikeout to end the game. DeGregory went  2-for-5 with three runs and an RBI, while Lauren Fortunato ’17 finished 3-for-3 with a triple and two RBI.

Union swept the Thoroughbreds in the second series of the week, but two St. Lawrence losses to Rochester on Sunday put Skidmore in the Liberty League playoffs in successive years for the first time in program history. 

In the first game, Fortunato gave the team a 2-0 lead with a two-run home run in the bottom of the first. After Union tied it at 2-2, the Thoroughbreds pushed back in front with two runs in both the third and fourth innings. Cassie Fishkin ’16 delivered a two-run single in the third and DeGregory belted a two-run home run in the fourth to make it 6-2. The Dutchwomen answered back, scoring five runs in the top of the fifth and hanging on for the 7-6 win. Union opened up a 5-0 lead after three innings in game two, pulling away for the 7-3 win. Casey Attonito ’18 was  3-for-4 with an RBI, while Shea and Lauren Gorstein ’17 had two hits each.  The team concludes the regular season with a home doubleheader against Hamilton at 4 p.m. Tuesday, April 28. The Thoroughbreds travel to Rochester for the Liberty League tournament April 30-May 2.

Women’s lacrosse held off William Smith, 11-10, before coming up just short at Union. Tied 7-7 with the Herons with 20:36 remaining in regulation, the team rattled off three unanswered goals to open a 10-8 lead. Tyler Phillips ’17, Emma Harris ’16 and Spencer Morgan ’15 all tallied in the run. William Smith came back within one, but Phillips netted the insurance goal with 2:46 to play. Phillips finished with five goals on the game, while Harris and Morgan each added a hat trick. The Thoroughbreds took on Union for the Liberty League regular-season title on Saturday, falling just short in a 9-8 defeat. Trailing 9-7 with 2:53 to play, Phillips cut the deficit to one with her fourth goal of the game. The team had one final chance, but Phillips’s shot caromed off the post and the Dutchwomen collected the ensuing ground ball before running out the clock for the 9-8 win. Phillips became the fourth player in program history to score 50 goals in a season, potting four in the game. Morgan added two to become the team’s 13th 100-career-goal scorer and Harris pushed her scoring streak to 12 games with a goal. The Thoroughbreds, who will be making their first postseason appearance since 2011, will be the second seed in the Liberty League tournament. The team takes on Vassar in the semifinals Friday, May 1, at Union.

Nick Barra ’15 went 6-for-9 with four RBI and three runs to lead baseball to a sweep of St. Lawrence in the first two games of the series. He also picked up the win on the mound in game one in just his second appearance of the season, striking out four in a perfect 1 2/3 innings. In the first game, Barra was 2-for-5 with a double, two runs and two RBI as the Thoroughbreds battled to a 9-8 win. Mat Marino ’17 hit a solo home run and Chris Lorenz ’16 was 3-for-4 with a double and two RBI.

Trailing 2-0 in game two, the team fought back with three runs in the seventh before hanging on for the 6-3 win. Barra led the offense again, going 4-for-4 with a double and two RBI, while Mike Lavita ’16 was 2-for-3 with a run and an RBI,  and Josh Brown ’17 finished 2-for-4 with an RBI. Andrew Bannon ’15 improved to 3-2 with a complete-game win, allowing three runs on eight hits with four walks and four strikeouts.

After dropping game three, the Thoroughbreds used two runs in the bottom of the ninth to secure a 7-6 victory. With the team down 6-5 heading into the bottom of the ninth, Dan Miller ’15 produced a clutch two-out RBI single to tie the game. Shankar Mani ’18 singled to put runners on the corners and LaVita hit what appeared to be a routine grounder, but the ball went through the second baseman’s legs, allowing Miller to score from third and seal the win. Eric Damphousse ’18 hit his first collegiate home run in the win, while Andrew Aikins ’18 has his best career start, going seven innings and allowing two runs on eight hits. The team hosts Middlebury for a single game at 4 p.m. Tuesday, April 28.

Women’s tennis knocked off No. 32 Trinity, 6-3, in a final tune-up for the Liberty League tournament. Michelle Fuca ’18 and Erica Meno ’18 teamed up for an 8-0 win at number-three doubles before each notched a win in singles. Meno won 6-1, 6-2 at number-four and Fuca won 6-1, 6-2 at number-five. Brianna Green ’18 and Caroline Finnegan ’18 teamed up for an 8-2 win at number two doubles and Finnegan added a 6-1, 6-0 victory at number six. The 16th-ranked Thoroughbreds will be the top seed in the Liberty League tournament May 2-3 in Ithaca, N.Y.

Men’s lacrosse dropped its season finale, 14-9, against No. 12 Union. The Dutchmen built a 7-3 halftime lead and never looked back. Cody Legeza ’18 posted this third consecutive mulit-point game with a pair of goals, while Kevin Mulvey ’16 extended his scoring streak to eight games with a goal and an assist. Josh Trachtenberg ’15 and Jack Metlzer ’17 each contributed a goal and a helper. Defenseman Sam Christiansen ’15 had a game-high four caused turnovers, while goalkeeper Chris Baughan ’18 collected a team-high five ground balls. Baughan made eight saves over the first 52:35 and John Sutherland ’15 made three saves in 7:25 of relief. The Thoroughbreds finished the season with an overall record of 5-10. ~ By Dan St.-Jacques