SOFTBALL

Roster  |  Coaches  |  Schedule / Results  |  News

SAN JOSE, CA - The University at Buffalo softball team opened play at the National Invitational Tournament in San Jose, CA with one win and two losses in opening-round pool play. The Bulls began the day with a 2-0 loss to nationally-ranked Arizona State before falling to Northern Iowa by a 5-0 score and then defeating host San Jose State by a 3-2 score in eight innings.

Freshman Stacey Evans (Collinsville, IL/Triad) threw a five-hitter against Arizona State in Buffalo's first game of the tournament, but the Sun Devils got all the offense they would need in a two-hit, two-run third inning. A single to right field by Nichole Thompson drove in Arizona State's first run, and a sacrifice fly to center by Kara Brun put the insurance run across the plate while pitcher Kristen Swetel allowed just four Buffalo hits in seven innings.

Julie Hibner

UB freshman Julie Hibner (Salem, OR/South Salem) had two of UB's hits while sophomores Allison Round (Markham, Ontario/Markham District) and Jessica Labella (Kings Park, NY/Kings Park) each went 1-for-3 in the game. The Sun Devils entered the game ranked seventh in the nation in the USA Today/NFCA (National Fastpitch Coaches Association) Top 25 poll released on Wednesday, March 6.

The Bulls gave up three runs in the first inning and two runs in the fourth against Northern Iowa, with just one earned run being charged to pitcher Andrea Sage (Depew, NY/Depew), who threw the complete game and allowed eight hits. Hibner was 2-for-3 from the plate and freshman Ann Marie Magur (Endicott, NY/Union-Endicott/Connecticut) was 2-for-2 to lead the Bulls' offense. Round and sophomore Breanne Nasti (Baldwin, NY/Baldwin) both went 1-for-4 from the plate.

Buffalo closed the day with a 3-2 extra-inning win over San Jose State. The Spartans scored the first run of the game in the third inning but the Bulls tied the score in the bottom of the seventh on an RBI-double to right field by Hibner to score Nasti, who had led off the inning with a triple to right.

Allison Round

San Jose State scored an unearned run in the top of the eighth inning to go ahead 2-1, but Buffalo answered with two runs in the bottom half of the inning when a single by Round scored Missy Switzer (West Seneca, NY/West Seneca West/Valparaiso) and Dominique Jones (Jamesville, NY/Jamesville-DeWitt). Round, Nasti and Hibner all finished with two hits in the game, and sophomore Heather Robbins (West Bloomfield, MI/West Bloomfield) pitched a complete game to earn the win on the mound.

The Bulls (1-3) play UNC-Greensboro in the consolation round of the National Invitational Tournament on Saturday, March 9 at 3 pm EST. The tournament concludes on Sunday, March 10.