SPORTS

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Softball splits Saturday doubleheader with Creighton

The Pirates softball team split their doubleheader on Saturday versus Creighton, closing out the second of two with a 9-7 Pirates win. A pair of solo home runs helped the Pirates stake claim to a 2-0 lead in the top of the first. With two down, Alexis Walkden sent her 13th of the year over the wall in left, and in the very next at-bat Sara Haefeli matched with a solo shot, her 13th of the season. From there, Danielle DeStaso was cruising on the mound, allowing just one hit and a pair of base runners through the first three innings before the Bluejays struck for three in the fourth. Creighton’s Liz Dike homered to deep center field to cut the SHU lead in half, then an inopportune-error with two outs prolonged the inning. Allie Reinhart hit a fly ball to left in foul territory, but Jackie DiPietro was unable to make a play. Given a second chance, Reinart sent a two-run shot to left center, giving the Bluejays a 3-2 lead. The Pirates grounded out five runs in the fifth, needing just three hits to do so, while sending 10 batters to the plate. After DeStaso drew a bases loaded walk to score Yasmin Harrel from third and tie the game, DiPietro hit a two-RBI single into right to put the Pirates back on top. The lead would not hold. Dike struck again for Creighton, this time hitting a grand slam out to left for her 10th home run of the season. That was the end of the day for DeStaso, as Lauren Fischer came in to close out the inning, neutralizing the Bluejay attack. After giving up a hit to the first batter she faced, she retired eight of the final 10 she faced, yielding just two hits and a walk in 2.2 innings of work. Walkden’s game-winning home run in the top of the sixth came under some strange circumstances. Creighton pitcher Micaela Whitney had hit Whitney Jones to lead off the inning, then threw three-straight balls to Walkden, prompting Creighton to enter Sydnee Eck mid at-bat. Eck proceeded to serve one right down the middle for Walkden, and she made them pay with a liner out to left center, her second of the game. With Fischer in a groove on the mound, this time the two-run cushion was enough, as she improved to 7-8 with the win. Harrell recorded a base hit in both games to extend her hitting streak to nine in a row. In addition to her solo home run, Haefeli also drew two walks, scoring twice, DiPietro went 2-for-4 with the big RBI single in the fifth, and freshman Alyssa Prukop came up with a pinch hit RBI single as well. In game one of the softball double-header Seton Hall (16-10, 5-5) was hurt by a big fifth-inning rally. After seeing a 2-0 lead slip away in the bottom of the third, SHU yielded four runs on five hits in the fifth as the Bluejays (17-11, 3-6) took a 6-2 lead. In the top of the second, a couple of walks gave the Pirates runners at first and second with two outs for Jones, who singled into left center to score Sara Foster and give SHU a 1-0 lead. Haefeli led off the top of the third and proceeded to tack on an additional run to the SHU lead, sending a solo home run on a line over the wall in left center. After that the Hall found trouble. SHU starter DeStaso walked the bases loaded in the bottom of the third, leading to a relief appearance from Casey Moses. A hit batter and groundout to second brought two runs home, resulting in a 2-2 tie heading into the fourth. While Creighton pitcher Micaela Whitney went through a stretch of retiring seven straight batters for Creighton, the Bluejay bats started to heat up. CU strung together five hits in the bottom of the fifth, including a stretch of four in a row that started with back-to-back doubles. The Bluejays took their first lead, 3-2, as Allie Reinhart doubled in Jen Daro, and scored thanks to a two-base hit to the gap in left center from Anna O'Gorman.Lauren Fischer came in to relieve Moses and was able to retire Liz Dike and Daro to put an end to Creighton's big inning. Seton Hall would pull within three as Joelle Arrante doubled to center field, scoring Jackie DiPietro in the top of the sixth, but that was all the offense they could generate down the stretch. Moses fell to 2-3 with the loss, while Whitney allowed two earned runs in 5.2 innings to improve to 9-6. Reinhart went 3-for-3 with two RBI, two runs scored and two doubles to pace the Creighton offense. The Pirates are back in action to finish off the three game series with Creighton tomorrow at 12 p.m. in Omaha, Nebraska. [subscribe-by-email-form]

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Haefeli rocking senior season

Sara Haefeli possessed what it took defensively to be the starting center fielder for the Seton Hall softball team last year. The problems lied at the plate. Haefeli’s junior season was her first as a scholarship player for the Pirates, and it was tough one offensively. The right-hander hit just .212 at the dish. But, Haefeli has been The Hall’s most improved player in the 2015 campaign thus far. The senior is hitting .313 and is second on the team with a .717 slugging percentage. She has hammered 11 home runs, which is second in the Big East, making her a player of the year candidate in the league. Haefeli is satisfied with her progress, and the keys to her success are no secret. Q: What has been the key to transitioning from a tough junior year to what has been an outstanding senior season? A: “Sheer determination. I have the mindset that a pitcher can’t beat me when I step up to the plate. Last year, I’ll admit, mentally I was not completely right. But I’ve put it behind me. I came to an epiphany that if I play my game, good things are going to happen. I’m just trying to do me, to be Sara Haefeli” Q: Do you feel like you can hit just about anything right now? A: “Absolutely. It’s about having a little bit of an edge. I’ve tried to have some more cockiness at the plate. Yes, I always want to stay humble. But there’s something about being aggressive too. Our senior class has tried to create more of that culture this season.” Q: What makes you think this team can do something special in the postseason? A: “We know we only reached 14 wins last season. That was hard to swallow, but what makes me think that this season is special is that this team meshes both on and off the field. It all comes down to focus. We have to mentally have the will to win. This team has that type of an edge this season. There’s more of a toughness in place.” Q: What has Coach Smith done for you as a player throughout your time at Seton Hall? A: “She’s set a foundation for this program and she’s focused on doing the little things in order to win. One thing that Coach (Smith) has established that was not in place with the program before she got here is that we pick each other up. It may seem so little, but she’s created a culture. Every player realizes that there’s a lot more going on than what they do individually in a game. The other thing that Coach (Smith) has done is she believes in me. She respects me. And that’s made me want to play really hard for her. I think my fellow teammates can agree. She lights a fire under us. That’s made me a better player.” Q: How can you be a legitimate postseason contender? A: “Yogi Berra said it, “The game is 90 percent mental and the other half is physical.” We have to be ready mentally to win games. If we don’t do that, we’re not going to have success. It’s as simple as that. And it starts this weekend.” At 4-4 and in third in the Big East entering a crucial road weekend in league play, the Pirates will take on the Creighton Bluejays, losers of three in a row, this weekend in Omaha, Neb. Go to thesetonian.com for complete updates on The Hall as the blue and white are in pursuit of a postseason berth.

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Baseball wallops Wagner 6-1

Seton Hall traveled to Staten Island on Wednesday afternoon when they took on Wagner College and came out victorious with a 6-1 win, advancing their record to 16-10. Starting Sophomore pitcher Anthony Pacillo gave up just two hits over five scoreless innings and overall struck out six batters and walked only one to improve to 2-2 on the season. The game was a scoreless event up until the top of the fifth when junior Derek Jenkins drove in freshman Ryan Ramiz to give the Pirates a 1-0 lead over Wagner. Up until the first run, the Pirate’s offense was off to a slow start. Things then picked up in the top of the sixth inning when senior Sal Annunziata led off with a single hit and then moved on to second off of a single by senior Tyler Boyd. A single from junior Chris Chiaradio drove in Annunziata to earn the Pirate’s second run of the day. Boyd then scored after a failed pickoff attempt by Wagner’s catcher sailed high off of first base. Junior Zach Weigel then singled home Chiradio to extend the Pirate’s lead to 4-0. Seton Hall added two more runs on the day in the top of the seventh inning to make their lead 6-0. With one out, freshman Rob Dadona pinch hit and singled up the middle.  With two outs, Chiaradio walked.  Junior Matt Fortin followed with a hit to third and the third baseman booted the ball.  Dadona then scored allowing for Chiaradio to advance to second.  Ramiz then followed with an RBI single to give The Hall a 6-0 lead. Wagner’s only run of the day came from center fielder Trey Nicosia in the bottom of the eighth. The Pirates will look to extend their win streak to 10 straight and remain perfect in conference play when they play Big East rival St John’s on Friday. Friday’s game will be the first of a three game series for the two teams that will lead on into this weekend. First pitch for Friday is scheduled for 3:00 p.m. in Queens, N.Y. Olivia Mulvihill can be reached at olivia.mulvihill@student.shu.edu or on Twitter @oliviamulvihill.

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Pirates break losing skid behind Karlis’ hot shooting

“You got 20 minutes to figure it out.” That was the mantra head coach Kevin Willard set down on his team during halftime, down 34-24 to Creighton. The Pirates needed to “figure it out” if they wanted to avoid a seventh consecutive loss. They “figured it out” in a big way Saturday with a big come-from-behind 67-66 win over the Bluejays. How did it happen? It certainly was not easy. The Pirates trailed for the entirety of the first half and it was clear the offensive lacked continuity, with 8 first half turnovers as a result. And when leadership has been a question for the better part of the past month with this team, an unlikely player stepped up in a big way. Senior Haralds Karlis, who had not scored more than ten points all season, came up clutch in the win, finishing with a season-high 14 points. After the game, Willard was not quiet on the emergence of his senior. “He played terrific, played under control,” Willard said. “There wasn’t anything about his game I didn’t like.” For Haralds, the coming out party of his season could not have come at a better time, especially with his career with the Pirates coming to a close. “I felt great,” Karlis said. “I didn’t try to force anything, just trying to make the right play and I guess scoring was the right play.” Karlis’ leadership Saturday was just what the streaking Pirates needed. “It was very important win for us to keep our season alive a little bit and hopefully we can get some momentum going,” Karlis said. On a personal note, it was also what Karlis needed as well. “I’ve been waiting for a long time, it felt good,” Karlis said. The second half was all about freshman Angel Delgado, who finished with 13 points and 11 rebounds, including the game-winning put back with nine seconds left. Delgado logged just nine first-half minutes, which raised question. But Willard said it was due to an emotional rift more than anything. “Angel’s emotional…he got scored on twice and missed two shots,” Willard said. “When he gets down, he gets down.” Delgado was crucial for the Pirates down the stretch, without even noting the game-winning layup. A series of layups brought the Pirates back in the second half. In fact, the center scored eight of the Pirates 12 points during a 12-5 stretch in the second half. Trading shots at the tail end of the game is what led to the wild finish in Newark. The Pirates finally tied the score for the first time since 0-0 at the nine-minute mark. Freshman Khadeen Carrington helped keep the Pirates in the game, scoring eight of the Pirates final 15 points. Willard offered words for his freshman guard after the game. “Khadeen has had such a steady year,” Willard said. “I thought he played terrific.” The win moves the Pirates into seventh place in the Big East standings, jumping DePaul who lost earlier in the day to Xavier. From here the Pirates will take on the Providence Friars, who come to town next Wednesday. The Pirates will honor the three seniors on the team, Haralds Karlis, Brandon Mobley and Stephane Manga, who will play their final games at the Prudential Center of their careers. “I hate senior night because each group is special in their own way,” Willard said. “Brandon and H (Haralds Karlis) have been with me now for four years.” Willard added the three seniors have all represented the University “very well.” Tip-off for Wednesday’s contest is scheduled for 7 p.m.

Women’s basketball cruises to road win over Xavier

The Seton Hall women’s basketball team were solid in Cincinnati as they defeated the Musketeers 77-60 to move into first place in the Big East and one win away from at least a share of the regular season conference title. Tabatha Richardson-Smith led the way for The Hall with 24 points to along with four rebounds. The junior was efficient as she knocked 10-17 from the field and 4-8 from behind the arc. Whenever the team needs scoring they have always been able to turn to Richardson-Smith and she delivered again on Friday. The Pirates (25-4, 14-3) also got a boost from graduate student Ka-Deidre Simmons. She continued her great season and finished with 21 points on just 6-12 from the field. She would also dish out eight assists and hit all nine of her shots from the free throw line. The third member of Seton Hall’s dynamic trio, Daisha Simmons, struggled with her shot as she went just 5-21 from the floor, but came away with six rebounds and seven assists. Despite her bad shooting night, Simmons made an impact in other areas on the floor. One performance that likely raised the eyebrows on the Pirates’ coaching staff and fans was the double-double from junior college transfer Tiffany Jones. She had 13 points and ripped down 14 rebounds. Since she made an important three pointer to help defeat Villanova in the first meeting this season at The Pavilion, Jones has continued to gain an important role on this team. Seton Hall jumped out to an early lead of 12-2, were able to take a 43-21 lead into the half and did not look back from there. The Pirates never trailed in the game and led for all but 27 seconds in the contest when the game was briefly tied. The Pirates outscored Xavier 44-24 in points coming from the paint as they were able to penetrate and get high percentage looks. Another key to the win was the fact that The Hall capitalized on turnovers. Seton Hall scored 24 points off of the 19 turnovers that they forced, which was vital in building and maintaining their big lead. Next up for Seton Hall is the regular season finale against Butler in Indianapolis as they look to grab at least a share of the regular season conference title with a win over the Bulldogs. Tip is scheduled for March 1 at 1 p.m.

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