NEW YORK, N.Y.- The Hunter College softball team closed out the regular season with a pair of tightly contested losses in a City University of New York Athletic Conference (CUNYAC) doubleheader against John Jay on Friday evening at Fordham University. The Hawks fell 2-1 in both games, finishing the regular season at 12-28 overall and 6-4 in conference play.
Game 1: Hunter 1, John Jay 2 (9 inn.)
Hunter battled into extra innings in the opener, but John Jay (15-20, 8-2 CUNYAC) walked it off in the ninth.
The Hawks were held scoreless through seven innings before breaking through in the eighth asBrianna Flores scored on an error to give Hunter a 1-0 lead.
The Bloodhounds responded in the bottom half with a sacrifice fly to tie the game and force a ninth inning. In the final frame, the home team capitalized on a bunt and a fielder's choice to push across the winning run.
Elizabeth Thompson led the offense with two hits, while Grace Basil, Abigail Bidinger, and Isabella Thumhart each added a hit as the Purple and Gold totaled five.
In the circle, Basil was strong, tossing eight innings while allowing just two runs (none earned) on five hits.
Game 2: Hunter 1, John Jay 2
Hunter struck first in the second game but was unable to hold off a late push from the Bloodhounds.
The Hawks took an early 1-0 lead in the first inning as Basil scored on a sacrifice fly from Thumhart. Hunter continued to threaten, recording five hits in the game, including a two-hit performance from Sonia Rosales Rosenthal.
John Jay answered with two runs in the fourth inning, using timely hitting to take the lead.
Bidinger turned in a solid outing in the circle, striking out eight over six innings while allowing just three hits and two runs.
Hunter now turns its attention to postseason play, opening the CUNYAC Championship as the No. 3 seed on May 7.
