KISSIMMEE, Fla. -- Senior Stephanie Yagi came through with a go-ahead, two-run double in the top of the sixth inning as the Columbia softball team came back from a 4-1 deficit to finish off its Rebel Spring Games stint with a 5-4 win over Youngstown State on Wednesday.
Classmates Anne Marie Skylis and Karen Tulig also came through with run-scoring two-base hits in the fourth to help pare the deficit to one. First-year Prophet Gaspard won her third consecutive start, tying a career high with eight strikeouts in the complete-game victory.
In the first game of the day, Columbia saw a 2-0 lead slip away as Army scored three runs in the fifth and held on for a 3-2 win.
Youngstown State Recap
Youngstown State opened the scoring by pushing home a pair of runs in both the first and second innings. An RBI triple with two outs by Vicky Rumph and a subsequent RBI single by Sarah Gabel gave the Penguins a 2-0 lead after one inning of play.
The Lions got on the board in the top of the second, as senior Maggie Johnson hit a towering home run over the wall in left-centerfield to halve the deficit to 2-1.
In the bottom half of the inning, Youngstown State received run-scoring singles from Haley Thomas and Jordan Ingalls to push the lead to 4-1.
The score would remain the same until the top half of the fourth inning, when Columbia would begin its comeback. First-year Morgan Cook singled through the left side to open the frame, before back-to-back doubles from Skylis and Tulig produced a pair of tallies and brought the Lions to within 4-3.
After allowing four runs over the first two innings, Gaspard settled in and allowed just one hit over the final five frames. Five of her eight strikeouts also came over that span.
With Gaspard holding the Penguins at bay, the Lions took advantage in the top of the sixth and took their first lead of the game. Consecutive singles to lead off by Skylis and Tulig set the stage for Yagi, who drilled the first pitch she saw into the left-centerfield gap to score both of her classmates and give Columbia a 5-4 advantage.
Youngstown State threatened in the bottom half of the inning, as a walk and hit-by-pitch put a pair on with two outs. But Gaspard struck out Ingalls on a 3-2 pitch to retire the side and put an end to the scoring chance. The Louisiana native worked around an error that allowed the leadoff runner to reach in the seventh to pick up her third win of the season.
Army Recap
Columbia had numerous chances to score, leaving the bases loaded twice and nine runners on base total in a 3-2 defeat at the hands of Army.
The Lions stranded a trio of base runners in the third inning, and had the bases loaded again in the fourth with only one out. Black Knights pitcher Shawna Bleyl was able to record a strike out to put two away for sophomore Jennifer Bergeron. It appeared as though Bergeron would get an RBI on a hit by pitch, but the umpire behind home plate called the sophomore shortstop back to the batter's box and ruled that she leaned into the pitch.
The unfortunate break would pay off two pitches later, as Bergeron blooped a single over the head of the Army first baseman to plate two and give Columbia a 2-0 advantage.
The lead would be short-lived, however, as Army scored three runs in the next half-inning to take the lead. All three runs would score with two outs, as a two-run triple by shortstop April Ortenzo knotted the contest briefly before a single by the next batter brought her home to give the Black Knights the lead.
Columbia put two runners on via walk in the fifth but could not advance either further than second base. In the seventh, Cook lead off with an infield single and moved all the way to third but not move the final 60 feet as the Lions dropped the one-run decision.
Johnson suffered the loss in the circle but had two hits and scored a run at the plate. First-year Emily Snodgrass also had a pair of hits for the Lions.
Columbia will return north to take on UConn and Hofstra at the Hofstra Invitational on March 19-20.
