Army Earns Rubber Match Victory Over Boston U

BOSTON, Mass. – Army West Point Softball (27-20, 10-2) claimed a rubber match victory on Sunday, taking down the Boston University Terriers (29-15, 10-2) in extra innings, 6-5.
With the win, Army not only ties the Terriers for the top of the Patriot League standings but also claims their first series win over Boston University since 2016 when the Black Knights swept the Terriers in West Point.

Taylor Brown led the Black Knights with three hits, with Annie Christiana and Ashton White each adding two hots of their own. Christiana led the team with two runs while White led the team with two RBIs.

Emma Murchison, Maisi Sigler, Leila Hurst and Maaika Dones each added a hit, while Dones and Tepley each added a run alongside Sam Bocis, who added a run while pinch-running for Leila Hurst.

As for the Black Knights pitching unit, sophomore Katelyn Flanders received her second straight start of the series, finishing the game with five strikeouts, 10 hits, five runs and two walks allowed in 5.2 innings pitched.

Junior Breanna Izzo came into the game as relief and finished the game with five strikeouts and no runs, hits, or walks allowed in 3.2 innings played. Izzo pitched ten up and ten down, and went on to earn the win for the Black Knights.

To start the first inning, the Black Knights had two hits, with Taylor Brown and Ashton White both hitting singles. But the pair was left stranded.

In the bottom of the first inning, the Terriers were able to add their first run on the board, taking a 1-0 lead.

After a flyout, the Terriers drew a hit-by-pitch, then two singles allowed the runner to advance home, Katelyn Flanders ended the inning with her first strikeout of the game.

Maisi Sigler added her first hit in the top of the second with a single to right field, but she was also left stranded. Meanwhile, Flanders added another strikeout and the Black Knights forced the Terriers to go three-and-out.

Annie Christiana led off the third inning with a single to left center, then Taylor Brown added her second hit of the day with a double to right center, advancing both to scoring position.

Ashton White then made contact with the ball, reaching on a fielder’s choice, allowing Annie Christiana to advance home to tie the game at 1-1.

Boston U then added another run in the bottom of the third inning through a double, a walk and a single, retaking the lead at 2-1. With two runners left on base, Flanders added her third strikeout while the Black Knights were able to get out of the inning while only allowing one run.

The Black Knights would make their move in the fourth inning, earning four runs off three hits and one error, retaking the lead and making it a 5-2 game.

The inning started with Leila Hurst drawing a walk, with Sam Bocis then entering to pinch run for the Black Knights. Maaika Dones then singled to the pitcher to get on base to advance Bocis to second.

Sienna Tepley then reached on a fielder’s choice on a bunt, advancing all the runners, then a throwing error by third base allowed Sam Bocis to score and tie the game at 2-2.

Then Annie Christiana added her second hit of the game, singling up the middle and allowing Maaika Dones to score. Then Ashton White singled up the middle, giving room for Sienna Tepley to reach home making it a 4-2 game.

Then during the next at bat, Ashton White was able to steal second, giving room for Annie Christiana to steal home, making it a 5-2 game in Army’s favor.

In the bottom of the fourth inning, Boston U was able to get two hits, but the Black Knights’s defense and an inning-ending strikeout thrown by Katelyn Flanders kept it a 5-2 game heading into the fifth inning.

In the fifth inning, the Black Knights went three and out while the Terriers only recorded one hit, but the game still stayed 5-2 in Army’s favor.

The Black Knights went three and out in the sixth inning, then the Terriers knocked two hits and drew a walk, loading the bases. Then Boston U hit a base-clearing double, tying the game at 5-5. Breanna Izzo then entered the game for Flanders and was able to end the inning with a strikeout.

Emma Murchison got her first hit of the game with a single to the shortstop but was left on the base paths, sending it to the bottom of the seventh. In the bottom of the seventh, Breanna Izzo and the Black Knights’ defense forced three putouts, a line out, pop up and ground out, to send the game into extra innings.

Leila Hurst was able to leadoff the top pf the eighth inning with a single to the shortstop, but three consecutive outs from the Black Knights sent the game to the bottom of the eight.In the bottom frame, Izzo forced two strikeouts swinging and a groundout, sending it to the ninth inning.

Army would add its first run on the board since the fourth inning in the ninth inning, making it a 6-5 game.

Taylor Brown hit a leadoff single to start the inning, then Ashton White grounded out to first base to allow Brown to advance to second. Then, Breanna Coonfare, who was subbed into right field in the bottom of the fourth inning, came to the plate for her second at-bat of the day.

Breanna Coonfare laid out a sacrifice bunt to advance Brown to third, but an error by Boston U’s pitcher in fielding the ball allowed Taylor Brown to reach home plate, making it a 6-5 game in Army’s favor.

The Black Knights would suffer a pop-up put out and a strikeout in the next two at-bats, sending the game to the bottom of the ninth for Izzo and the defense to finish off.

Breanna Izzo started the inning hot, throwing for two consecutive strikeouts, only giving the Terriers one out to work with then, on a 2-2 count, Boston U grounded out to Aston White, who threw the ball to Leila Hurst at first, ending the game and giving Army the win.