Madeira Beach, F.L. – The Le Moyne College softball team recorded their first ever Division I win today against Saint Bonaventure University at the second day of THE Spring Games. The Dolphins first took on Brown University to start their day.
 
"We made history today with our first win as an NCAA Division 1 program but I do not consider it our first win of the season" said head coach Tracey Roman. "This win is a byproduct of the growth experienced and lessons learned from the eight losses that came before today. The wins through those losses may not count in the win column but it's where our greatest growth as a team occurs. These athletes battle every time they take the field despite the score and outside noise. To come out with the same conviction and fire in your belly day in and day out despite our record isn't easy and speaks to the character and perseverance of our team.  That's the real victory and what will make today's win the first of many for our softball program."
 
The first inning was slow for both teams, but in the second the Bears recorded a homerun from Jayme Gross who brought in another run from Lily Berlinger. The Dolphins struggled finding a rhythm while in the third the Bears score three more runs by Moody, Brianna Rodriguez, and Jasmine Hsiao, making it 0-5. In the fourth, Brown took six more runs inching their lead to 0-11. The Bears stayed at 11, while the Dolphins closed the fifth inning with a homerun from junior right fielder Alyssa Dybacz (Baldwinsville, N.Y. / Charles W. Baker) who brought in junior second baseman Dominique Rinaldi (Sayville, NY/Sayville) and redshirt junior Brooke Nicolaos (Liverpool, N.Y. / Cicero-North Syracuse) ending the game 3-11.
 
In the second game of the day against St. Bonaventure, Dybacz scored off of a single to right field from Sophomore designated player Audrey Benderski (Spring Lake Park, Minn./Spring Lake Park)  to end the first inning. In the second inning, Rinaldi brought home junior catcher Elaina Kassap (Long Beach, N.Y. / Long Beach) followed by Rinaldi scoring off of a double hit by freshman left-fielder Sydney Nesci (Cicero, N.Y./Cicero-North Syracuse). Dybacz then singled to left field bringing in Nesci. First baseman Mckenzie Bergdoll (Attleboro, Mass./Attleboro) doubled to center, which gave Dybacz the opening to score another run. Redshirt junior Frankie Larobardiere (North Syracuse, N.Y. / Cicero-North Syracuse/ Onondaga C.C.) singled to left bringing in Bergdoll, and then Kassap singled to right bringing in Audrey Benderski making it 7-0 ending the first half of the second inning.
 
It wasn't until the bottom of the third inning that the Bonnies responded with Olivia Whitecar scoring off of a single from Sydney DeGram. Following this, Olivia Moon singled to center bringing in two RBI's from Kennedy Haberl and DeGram, making 7-3.
 
In the top of the fifth, Benderski hit a double to center bringing in Bergdoll and Dybacz for two more runs. Benderski then scored off a single from Larobardiere. Nicolaos singled to left bringing home Kassap and Larobardiere to make the score 12-3. The Bonnies scored two ore runs by Haberl and Moon making it 12-5 to end the fifth.
 
In the sixth, freshman outfielder Kara Bacon (Warrensburg, N.Y. / Warrensburg) scored after pinch running for Nesci by a single from graduate center-fielder Isabelle Boudreau (Memramcook, New Brunswick/Mathieu-Martin/Pace). Boudreau scored off of another single by Benderski followed by a run from Benderski off of a walk from Rinaldi. The game finished with a final score 15-5 as the Dolphins took home their first win of the season. Graduate pitcher Laura Bennet (Corning, NY/Corning-Painted Post) was the winning pitcher this game.
 
Le Moyne will compete in day three of THE Spring Games tomorrow Saturday, February 24^th, with their first game at 1:30 against Butler University and the second game against Middle Tennessee University at 4pm at R.O.C. Park – Madeira Beach, FL.