Falcons drop opening games in Florida to Emerson, Cornell College Sunday

Auburndale, FL – The Fitchburg State University softball team dropped a pair of contests on Sunday, falling to Emerson College, 8–0, before suffering an 11–0 setback to Cornell College in five innings.

The Basics

Game 1 Score: Emerson 8, Fitchburg State 0
Game 2 Score: Cornell College 11, Fitchburg State 0 (5 innings)
Records: Fitchburg State (0-2) | Emerson (1-0) | Cornell College (3-0)

How It Happened

Game 1

Emerson defeated the Fitchburg State Falcons 8–0 after building an early lead and adding insurance runs later in the game. Emerson struck first in the opening inning with a three-run double from Casey Yacovelli and extended the lead in the second inning with RBI hits from Riley Caiazza and Avi Kuperman. The visitors continued to apply pressure in the sixth inning, adding three more runs highlighted by an RBI single from Kari Sorensen and a two-run single from Caiazza to close out the scoring.

Fitchburg State recorded four hits in the game, led by a strong performance from Carolyn Brodeur (Ashby, MA), who went 2-for-3 at the plate. Jessica Mueller (Fitchburg, MA) and Julia Cooper (Lumberton, NJ) each added a hit, while Chloe Bafundo (Southington, CT) reached base twice with walks. The Falcons' best opportunity came in the third inning when Lauren Ahearn (Danvers, MA) drew a walk and Brodeur followed with a single to put two runners on. Mueller later added an infield single to load the bases with two outs, but Emerson escaped the jam to keep Fitchburg State off the board. The Falcons finished with four hits and three walks but were limited offensively as Emerson secured the shutout.

Game 2

Cornell College defeated the Fitchburg State Falcons 11–0 in a five-inning game on Sunday, as the Falcons were limited to just two hits offensively. Fitchburg State's lone hits came from Chloe Bafundo (Southington, CT) and Priscilla Dillon (Glennville, GA), but the Falcons were unable to generate sustained offense, finishing with 16 at-bats and six strikeouts while leaving just one runner on base.

Cornell College built an early lead and steadily added on, scoring once in the first inning before erupting for five runs in the second to take control of the game. Additional runs in the fourth and fifth innings extended the margin, highlighted by a two-run home run from Corrin Kennedy.

By The Numbers

• Carolyn Brodeur (Ashby, MA) led the Falcons in game one, going 2-for-3 at the plate
  
  

• Jessica Mueller (Fitchburg, MA) and Julia Cooper (Lumberton, NJ) each added one hit in the opener
  
  

• Chloe Bafundo (Southington, CT) reached base twice on walks in game one and added a hit in game two
  
  

• Priscilla Dillon (Glennville, GA) recorded one hit in the second contest
  
  

• Fitchburg State totaled six hits and three walks across the doubleheader
  
  

Up Next

The Falcons return to action on Monday as they continue non-conference play during their Florida trip, taking on Franciscan at 4:45 PM, followed by Monmouth (Illinois) at 7 PM.