Sydney Horan Does It All for Quinnipiac Softball in Win Over Bryant
(Photo: Quinnipiac Athletics)
April 14, 2022
Two words: Sydney Horan.
The first year was the story for the Quinnipiac Bobcats softball team as it welcomed the Bryant Bulldogs to Hamden on Wednesday afternoon.
It was the top of the fifth inning as the Bobcats found themselves down 2-0 and Quinnipiac starter Jaclyn Gonzalez was dealing with a bases loaded jam with just one out. Head coach Hillary Smith decided to go to her second option in Horan out of the bullpen.
Horan picked up a huge strikeout and a groundout to keep the Bulldog lead where it was and strand all three runners. That was not all for Horan.
In the bottom half of the fifth, Gianna Palmisano and Karolyn Walker both drew two out walks ahead of Horan in her first career at-bat. She would go on to put a single right up the middle to put the Bobcats within one and get to the Bulldog bullpen. A walk loaded the bases for another first year in Brooke Hilliard who hit a single to score two and give the Bobcats the lead.
Horan wouldn’t look back as she went the rest of the way in relief. The Bobcats would hold on to the lead and won 3-2 despite a scary seventh inning.
It wasn’t seven innings of fantastic softball for the Bobcats. Their early inning struggles continued as they didn’t even get a runner on base until the third and they finally scratched the scoreboard in the fifth.
“I think we are just waiting a little bit long to make the adjustments,” Smith said. “I also think we are hitting the ball really hard a lot, they just aren’t going through.”
The Bobcats are playing as well as they have all year. After splitting both series this weekend, they have won three of their last five which is exactly what they need to be doing as they head further into conference play.
“I think we really have just been harping on clean defense, pitchers just doing their job, and just understanding their role and as hitters just making it simple,” Smith said.
The Bobcats stay in Hamden for their next game on Saturday as they face off against a more than decent Rider team which should be a test for Quinnipiac.
