The NYU baseball and softball teams played to mixed results yesterday, with softball splitting a doubleheader against New Jersey City University and baseball losing to Ursinus University.

The inaugural season for softball has been tough for the 9-23 Violets. Compared to the beginning of the season, however, they have done better recently, winning four of their last eight games.

They dropped the first game against the Gothic Knights 8-5 in a game that went back and forth. The Knights were hot right out of the gate, putting up four runs in the first inning with a couple back-to-back singles and an error committed by the Violets. NYU quickly responded in the second inning, scoring four runs taking the lead on two singles with runners on second and third followed by a long double and another single up the middle. Unfortunately, the Knights took a lead they would never give up in the next inning with two runs of their own. Sophomore Jacqueline Tremblay took the loss, giving her a 4-9 record.

The Violets were victorious in second game of the doubleheader, edging out the Knights 8-3. During the game, they showcased their offensive capabilities as they put up eight runs on eleven hits. Unlike the first game, neither team started particularly strong. It took until the middle of the game for NYU to score first with two runs in the top of the fourth. The Knights responded with a run in the bottom of the fourth, but the Violets exploded in the sixth and seventh innings, scoring six more runs. Sophomore Molly Webber doubled in a run in the sixth inning followed by an error by the Knights, which allowed Webber to score. In the seventh inning, the Violets hit six singles and scored four more runs to put the game out of reach for the Knights. Freshman pitcher Sage Scheiwiller threw a complete game to insure the victory, only giving up one run through seven innings.   

After their own rocky start, the baseball team has been doing better of late, going 4-2 in their last six games before their 8-5 loss yesterday against Ursinus. With just two games remaining, the Violets still have the possibility of finishing their season at .500.

The Bears put up a five spot in the second inning with the help of two Violet errors, followed by a double and a sacrifice bunt. The Violets were unable to come back from that deficit. They scored twice in the fourth inning, but the Bears responded with three more runs in the bottom of the inning. The Violets were able to produce a few more runs in the fifth and eighth innings but could not get closer than three runs behind the Bears before the game ended.

Even though they lost, NYU was able to get a season-best performance by freshman relief pitcher Marshall Kramsky, who only surrendered one hit over three innings of shutdown work.

“Today we fought back and showed a lot of heart,” Kramsky said. “It really shows how far we have come as a team. A few weeks ago this game would have been a blow out. We know how good we are and how good we can be. I expect to finish this season strong and come out even hungrier for greater success next season.”

The softball and baseball teams will be back in action April 29 when softball takes on Florham University in Madison, New Jersey. Baseball will play a doubleheader against City College of New York at MCU Park in Brooklyn.

A version of this article appeared in the April 28 print edition. Email Kyle Luther at [email protected].