POUGHKEEPSIE, NY – Beginning a four-game weekend conference road trip, Siena Softball (18-20, 7-5) continued its recent struggles at the hands of rival Marist (18-24, 6-6). The Saints dropped a 9-1 run-rule decision and a 7-2 nightcap to the Red Foxes at Gartland Athletic Field in Poughkeepsie, New York Saturday afternoon.
 
Marist 9, Siena 1 (5)
 
Competing away from Siena's campus for the third consecutive doubleheader, the Red Foxes broke through immediately with a pair of bases-loaded walks in the first and a 2 RBI double in the second to jump out to a 4-0 lead. Siena got on the scoreboard via the first home run of the season from junior Angelina Stile on a solo shot in the top of the third, but the home team fired back with a five-run bottom of the inning off another two-run double and a three-run home run.
 
The Saints managed just three base-runners and could not extend the game to suffer their first run-rule loss of the season. Stile and classmate Shannon Bonewit each registered a hit, while freshman Adriana Romano (3-5) suffered the loss with two strikeouts and five walks over one and two-thirds innings of work.
 
Marist 7, Siena 2
 
Siena again fell victim to a slow start in game two, with the Red Foxes plating a pair in the first off a 2 RBI single, another in the second with an RBI groundout, and two in the third off a two-run home run. The home team's lead would grow to seven with a 2 RBI double in the fifth before the Saints finally mounted a comeback effort in the top of the seventh. Sophomore Isabella Pardo scored junior Jocelyn Ulrich on an RBI single, while Stile came around on an error by the catcher to give the game its final score before Marist induced the final out.
 
Marist held an 8-5 hits advantage, with Pardo registering a two-run outing to lead Siena offensively. Junior Nicole Patille (5-7) suffered the loss in the circle with two strikeouts in two and one-third innings, while Romano re-entered to fan one during the remaining three and two-thirds innings.
 
Siena will look to end a seven-game losing skid on Sunday, April 24, when it travels to Hamden, Connecticut for a doubleheader with Quinnipiac at Noon and 2 PM.