The Cornell softball team headed south to Florida for Spring Break to compete in a total of 14 games in eight days. Cornell participated in the South Florida invitational on March 16 and 17, facing off against five schools. The Red then went on to play double-headers at Bethune-Cookman University, Stetson University, Jacksonville University and Manhattan College. The squad also competed against the University of South Florida in a single game match up. The Red kicked off day one of the South Florida Invitational with games against the defending Northeast champion, Robert Morris University, and the reigning Big South champion, Radford University. The Red defeated RMU, 3-2, but fell to Radford, 7-5. In the RMU game, the Red scored one run in the fourth inning and two runs in the sixth to establish a two run lead going into the seventh inning. RMU rallied and scored one in the seventh, but the squad held its ground and prevented RMU from tying the game. In the second game of the day against Radford, Cornell fought a tough game from start to finish. Cornell was off to a good start with a 2-0 lead, but fell behind 5-2, and tied it at 5-5 in the sixth inning before slipping in the extra innings to hand RMU the win. Cornell opened its second day of the invitational with three contests, beginning with Quinnipiac. Parker was 3-for-3 with two doubles, a home run, four RBIs and three runs. Although the Red fell to Valparaiso, 3-4, in the second game, freshman Michiko McGivney showed a stellar performance and homered again. Erin Belles was also a key player with a flawless 2-for-2 execution. The Red finished the day off on a high note with a win against Boston College.Cornell then travelled to Daytona, Fla., the next day to face Bethune-Cookman in a double match up. In the first game, the Red started strong with a 6-0 lead after four and a half innings. Bethune-Cookman fought back with three runs, but it was not enough and the Red took home the win. The second game was more challenging for the Red, who quickly fell into a three-run deficit at the close of the second inning. The squad made two runs shortly thereafter, but would not go on to fully bridge the gap until the seventh inning. Cornell later made five more runs to capture the victory.The Red took on Stetson next and lost in both games, the first by a score of 3-10 and the second by a score of 6-7. Cornell hoped to end its losing streak in its games against Jacksonville, but could not pull through and lost both, 0-8 and 4-5. The Red then matched up against USF Bulls and was defeated 0-5, handing the Red its fifth consecutive loss. The Bulls’ four pitchers brought home the win for USF, as they all scattered five hits and three walks and struck out 10. The tide finally turned for the Red as the squad went on to defeat Manhattan in both games. The Red fought hard to bring home both victories: the first, 4-3, and the second, 16-6.
Original Author: Sydney Altschuler