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Bengals go 3-5 over first weekend without Hollander
By Tony Fiorello
On April 15, 2012
Buffalo State won three of eight games over the past week, but the contests weren't the primary focus
for the Bengals.
A somber mood hung over the team throughout the week due to the death of longtime head coach
Sandra Hollander. Hollander, who had been the face of the Bengals since 1989, passed away after losing
her battle with cancer on April 2.
"She was wonderful to be around," interim head coach Marie Curran said. "She had the biggest heart.
There wasn't anybody who I would call a friend of mine who had a bigger heart and cared about
everybody who she was near and who she was with.
"As a coach, she was intense. She brought something to the game that a lot of people have lost and
that's the ability to push your players to exceed their abilities because you're going to keep pushing
them to do that."
Freshman pitcher Maddie Coneys agreed, saying that the team benefited from her presence in many
ways.
"In the short amount of time that I knew her, she was always there for her players," Coneys said. "She
really pushed us and saw that we would live up to our potential."
On Wednesday, the team took the field against RIT and swept the Tigers in the doubleheader by scores
of 16-11 and 6-2. In the first game, the Bengals (11-11, 4-4 SUNYAC) scored seven runs in the third
inning to overcome a four-run deficit and never looked back.
Three players - junior outfielder Breanna Fenski, sophomore pitcher/infielder Aleesha Williams and
senior infielder Kyrstin Lekki - led the team with three hits each. Fenksi and Lekki also had four RBIs
apiece, and freshman infielder/catcher Kate Brownell joined the three in hitting one home run each to
pace the Bengals. Senior pitcher Kaylee Lekki pitched a complete game with five strikeouts for the win.
In the second game, Buffalo State scored the first five runs courtesy of runs batted in by Fenski,
Brownell, junior outfielder Brieanna Brink and sophomore infielder Shelly Maggard. Coneys allowed only
five hits and struck out seven to earn the win.
"Wednesday was an emotional roller-coaster beyond belief for us," Curran said. "RIT was the perfect
host. They were so nice to the girls.
"You could see at the beginning of the first game, we went down right away, but the girls got their focus
back and realized that we were there to play ball and did a phenomenal job."
On Friday, Buffalo State played its first home game without Hollander in 24 years. A moment of silence
was observed before the first pitch while the flag flew at half-mast. Hollander's initials were painted
behind home plate, and flowers were placed on the painting in remembrance of her.
The team split the doubleheader with Oswego, winning the first game 11-1 while losing the second 3-1.
Kyrstin Lekki, Buffalo State's Athlete of the Week for the second week in a row, hit a three-run home run
in the first game and junior infielder Sam Strapason went two-for-three with a double and three RBIs.
Coneys allowed just four hits and struck out seven to push her career record to 7-0.
In the second game, the Bengals weren't able to score until the seventh inning, the lone run coming off
of a home run by Lekki, who moved into second-place on Buffalo State's all-time home run list with 28,
just four shy of tying Deanna Hunt's career record of 32.
Lekki's sister, Kaylee, pitched well enough to win, but didn't receive much run support. After allowing
three runs on four hits in the first two innings, she surrendered just four hits the rest of the game.
"Near the end, I think we got a little tired, emotionally," Curran said. "It's been a long week. (Oswego
pitcher Ashley Snyder) was talented, and we didn't step up to hit the ball as well as we should have."
On Saturday, numerous former players made their way to Buffalo State to take part in a pre-game
ceremony that honored Hollander and to support the current team. Hollander's 10-year-old son, Alex,
threw out the first pitch.
"It's very sad," said Nadine Ambrosia (Sirianni), who was a four-time All-SUNYAC player from 2001-05
under Hollander. "She's a legend here and she touched so many people's lives. She was just a great
person. She had a very distinct personality and she carried herself very well."
Marissa Mariano, a former All-SUNYAC catcher who graduated in 2009, concurred.
"Honestly, it's real tough. To not see her standing at third base is one of the hardest things I've ever had
to do," Mariano said. "But I know she's here and she's watching this game with us. She was an incredible
person."
Cortland swept the Bengals by scores of 12-4 and 15-7. In the first game, Kyrstin Lekki hit a two-run
single and Maggard went two-for-three with a double. Coneys endured her first collegiate loss, allowing
14 hits and 10 earned runs.
The second of the two contests saw Cortland scored eight runs on six hits in the sixth inning, including
sophomore outfielder Meaghan Kohler's second grand slam of the day.
"There's no doubt about it: Cortland's really good," Curran said. "We made mistakes, and in the second
game, especially, we hung with them. We were getting hits and scoring runs, and not a lot of teams are
doing that against them this year. We need to get our focus back."
The Bengals weren't able to end their losing streak on Tuesday, as the team fell to the University of
Rochester by scores of 4-3 and 10-2.
The Bengals will play at home against Allegheny on Wednesday, followed by road dates with New Paltz
and Oneonta on Friday and Saturday, respectively.
"Going into these games, I think we need to settle down a little bit and relax, because it's been a
very emotional few days for us," Coneys said. "Based off of what we did offensively against a very
good defense like Cortland's, I think we'll be able to come out and play strongly against our next few
opponents."
Tony Fiorello can be reached by email at fiorello.record@live.com.
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