The New York Rise completes the three-game sweep
Nick Mongiovi
Hofstra University Reporter
…in their first series of their 2024 campaign with a 10-3 win over the Florida Vibe on Wednesday, July 3. The Rise put together a five-run second inning, which lifted them to victory and improved to a (3-0) record. The Vibe are still in search of their first win as they fell to (0-3).
The New York Rise trailed the Florida Vibe 2-0 after the first inning and a half of play. Sami Williams led off the bottom of the second with a single. With the bases loaded, Mary Iakopo worked a walk to knock in Williams from third, cutting the deficit to one. Ashley Trierweiler laced a single into center, scoring Riley Blampied and Nicole Mendes to give the New York Rise a 3-2 lead. Trierweiler advanced to second on the throw home.
Laird followed that up with an RBI double that split the left and center fielders, as Iakopo and Trierweiler came around to score, which gave the Rise a commanding 5-2 lead. The bats made tons of noise all series long.
“The girls can play, man, they can hit!”
“The girls can play, man, they can hit,” said New York Rise head coach Rodney “Crash” McCray. “We can play small ball, we can hit for power and then we have speed, so it’s a good combination.”
Florida’s two-spot in the first wasn’t enough to earn themselves a victory. Falling the one-out walk from Kara Canetto, Aly Newland singled through the right side to set up runners on first and second with one out for Sierra Frazier at the dish. Frazier cleared the bases with a two-RBI single to put the Vibe up 2-0.
Iakopo smashed a line drive double off the base of the wall in left center with one out in the third. Kayla Wedl singled to center and then advanced to second on the throw, setting up second and third with one out for Trierweiler.
Trierweiler continues to produce as she doubles to right field, scoring both Wedl and Iakopo to extend the team’s lead to 7-3. Alex Honnold drops a single between second base and right field, scoring Trierweiler from third to cap off a three-run third inning and extended the New York Rise’s lead to 8-3.
“A lot of girls at the top of the lineup stay short to the ball and they make contact,” McCray said. “If you make a mistake in the middle of our lineup, then we can take you off the yard. At the bottom of the lineup, we can put the ball in play, that’s the formula.”
The Rise rolled out two pitchers in this one as Courtney Wyche got the start and the win. Wyche allowed three runs on four hits, one walk and fanned two in 3.1 innings of work. Laurin Krings pitched 3.2 innings in relief, and she surrendered one run on four hits, one hit batsman, one walk and struck out two. Coach McCray has a reason for why they’ve been going two pitchers per game.
“We’re getting everybody in the rotation early in the year to keep them sharp.”
“We’re getting everybody in the rotation early in the year to keep them sharp,” McCray said. “By the time we get to the two week or so mark, we’re going to let them go the distance.”
The Rise fans packed the stands at Bill Edwards Stadium all three nights of the first series, making sure they stayed loud and root for their favorite players on game nights.
“Oh, this is a beautiful thing,” McCray said. “It energizes the girls, not like they need any, but it’s just fun to see the parents and kids get into it. I see a lot of female softball teams in attendance, so it gives them something to look forward to.”
The New York Rise hit the road for their next three-game series starting Friday, July 5, against the Oklahoma City Spark. First pitch is set for 8 p.m.
