Softball Dominates UMass in Weekend Series
Miller tosses a no-hitter as the Rams sweep the Minutewomen to climb back over .500 on the season
COURTESY OF FORDHAM ATHLETICS
Devon Miller, GSBRH ‘23, dominated the Minutewomen lineup over two spectacular starts.
April 6, 2022
The Fordham softball team outscored the University of Massachusetts (UMass) Minutewomen 22-3 over the weekend en route to a three-game sweep. The Rams never wavered against their Atlantic 10 (A10) rivals, as they led from the opening inning of the first game.
The two teams played a doubleheader on Saturday, April 2, with the first game lasting five innings. The series opener was also the Rams’ most dominant performance. Fordham started the first inning with a bang as Bailey Enoch, Fordham College at Rose Hill (FCRH) ’24, launched a grand slam set up by two UMass errors that loaded the bases. While the scoring didn’t stop there, those were the only runs the Rams needed to win the game.
Devon Miller, Gabelli School of Business at Rose Hill (GSBRH) ’23, shut down the Minutewomen’s lineup. Only four UMass batters reached base in the game, and none of them recorded a hit. The mercy rule ended the contest after five innings, giving Miller a truncated no-hitter, the fourth of her career.
On the rubber, Makenzie McGrath shone as she struck out nine batters in a complete game performance.
Miller’s domination encouraged the Fordham hitters to follow suit. The Rams scored in each of the first four innings, finishing the game with nine runs. This included a three-run homer by Rachel Hubertus, FCRH ’22, and another blast from Enoch.
In the second game of the day, the Rams continued to prosper. Once again, Fordham scored in the top of the first. Allie Clark, GSBRH ’25, hit a sacrifice fly to drive in a run before Hubertus hit her second home run of the series, giving the Rams an early 2-0 lead.
Fordham expanded its lead in the second with a two-run homer by Sarah Taffet, GSBRH ’22. The four-baggers didn’t stop there, as Julia Martine, GSBRH ’22, led the third inning off with another blast. Finally, Enoch hit her third homer of the day in the fifth inning, scoring the Rams’ sixth and seventh runs of the game.
On the rubber, Makenzie McGrath, GSBRH ’22, shone, as she struck out nine batters in a complete game performance. McGrath allowed just two runs and secured her fifth win of the season as Fordham triumphed by a score of 7-2.
UMass struck first in the final game of the series. With Miller on the rubber for her second start of the weekend, the Minutewomen finally scored off of a throwing error by Miller to take an early 1-0 lead in the first. It was the only damage mustered by the UMass offense all game.
The Fordham offense managed to rally later in the game. The Rams followed a similar script to their previous contest, with Clark hitting another sacrifice fly to get them on the board before Hubertus hit another two-run bomb, her third of the series and league-leading twelfth of the year, to give Fordham a 3-1 lead in the third.
The Rams’ 6-1 win on Sunday also marked Head Coach Melissa Inouye’s 200th career win.
Amanda Carey, FCRH ’23, tacked on another two-run home run in the fourth to further extend the Rams’ lead. Martine capped the scoring off, hitting a sacrifice fly to score Fordham’s final run of the game.
Miller cruised through the game in another flawless performance, finishing with five strikeouts and no earned runs over a complete seven innings. She lowered her ERA to 2.94 this season over the course of her assertive series performance.
The Rams’ 6-1 win on Sunday also marked Head Coach Melissa Inouye’s 200th career win, adding to her achievements that include the 2019 A10 Coach of the Year and an A10 Championship in 2019. Fordham now stands at 15-14 this season and 7-4 in conference play. The Rams have won six of their last seven games and sit firmly in fourth place in the A10.
Fordham will take on Manhattan College in a doubleheader on April 6. They will look to stay hot with just over a month left before the A10 Championship.
Get the latest Fordham sports updates on your Twitter feed. Follow The Observer’s sports Twitter page here.
