The New York University softball team completed its second consecutive doubleheader split by rallying to win game two against Washington University in St. Louis on Sunday, March 26.
The Violets also split Saturday's University Athletic Association (UAA) doubleheader with the Bears.
After dropping Sunday's opener 5-1, NYU rallied for two runs in the sixth inning and another in the seventh to post a 3-2 comeback victory in the nitecap.
In that second game,
Margaux Lesser and
Sophia Leon hit back-to-back singles with one out in the sixth to put the tying runs on base. Then, with two outs,
Madi Hand's clutch double to center field tied the game.
In the top of the seventh with the score still knotted,
Samantha Burggraf picked a perfect time to hit her first home run of the season, sending a one-out blast over the left center field fence to give NYU its first lead of the day.
"I was just trying to get a good pitch to drive," Burggraf explained. "There was no one on base and I just wanted to get on. I wasn't thinking home run. It was just a happy accident."
Marina Egbert, who started and went the distance for the Violets, held the lead in the bottom of the frame to secure her team-leading fifth victory of the season. In her seven innings, Egbert only allowed one earned run while scattering nine hits and striking out five.
Burggraf also drove in the winning run in Saturday's victory over Wash U.
"I'm a senior and I just want to do everything I can to be a leader and help us win," Burggraf explained. "I love this team and I love winning. I will do anything I can do to accommodate both those things."
The Violets fell behind early in Sunday's opener and never recovered. Wash U scored twice in the first off NYU starter
Jessie Werthman, who suffered her first collegiate loss.
Leon had two of the Violets' five hits and the team's only RBI in the contest.
NYU is now 13-5 overall and 2-2 in UAA play. Wash U is 9-9, 2-2.
"This is a great team skill-wise and they are my best friends," Burggraf added. "Being in the field with them and sharing success makes me happy. This was an important weekend, but there are are many more to come."
The Violets are back on the field next weekend for another UAA road trip. They will face Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, PA, for a four-game series beginning on Friday, March 31.