Old Westbury, N.Y. - The No. 2 seed LIU Post softball team is set to return to the East Coast Conference Championship final for the fourth-straight year, after dispatching top-seeded New York Institute of Technology, 3-1, on Friday at the NYIT Softball Field.
Junior pitcher Ashley Martin (Long Beach, N.Y.) ran into some early trouble, as she allowed a runner to move into scoring position in the first two innings. Martin evaded it though by striking out Madison Smith (Tustin, Calif.) and Katie Moreno (Globe, Ariz.) to silence the threat in the respective frames.
The Pioneer (36-12-1) offense then gave their right-hander some run support in the third. LIU Post capitalized on a pair of NYIT (36-12) infield errors, when sophomore outfielder Samantha Marrone (Holbrook, N.Y.) legged out an RBI infield single to stake the green and gold to a 1-0 advantage.
One batter later, freshman catcher Julia Seader (Piscataway, N.J.) ripped an RBI single to right to plate freshman shortstop Leah Mele (Coram, N.Y.), making it a 2-0 game.
The Bears, who stranded the bases loaded in the fourth, cut the deficit to 2-1 in the fifth. until the Pioneers re-claimed their two-run lead in the top of the sixth. Freshman first baseman Ashley Melendez (Levittown, N.Y.) belted a two-out solo shot to right to provide the scoring.
Martin then retired the side in order in the bottom of the sixth and seventh innings to send LIU Post to its fourth ECC Tournament title game appearance in as many seasons.
Martin pitched seven innings of six-hit, one-run, three-walk, four-strikeout ball in the victory. It was the third time she yielded one run or fewer in her last four outings.
Head Coach Jamie Apicella and the Pioneers will now face third-seeded Molloy College for the right to hoist the ECC Championship trophy. In 2014, LIU Post, needing two victories on the tournament's final day, defeated Molloy by scores of 17-7 and 16-7 to capture the title. The green and gold went on that season to win the NCAA Division II East Region crown.
Provided by the LIU Post Sports Information Department.
