This week the College’s softball team had mixed results, losing two games in a double-header against No. 6-ranked Messiah College and sweeping two games in a doubleheader against Rutgers University-Newark.
In the first game against the Falcons, the Lions fell by a score of 5-4. The Lions were down early as the Falcons tacked on the first four runs of the game in the first three innings. The Falcons extended the lead to 5-1 in the fifth inning, but the Lions rallied back in the top of the seventh.
Senior Colleen Cawley and junior Michelle Kent each knocked in runs with singles, but the Lions’ rally was not enough as they lost the first game.
“There were a bunch of things we could’ve done differently against Messiah,” sophomore Kelly Hommen said. “Against a team like Messiah who’s ranked sixth nationally, there’s not a lot of room for error. We came out pretty flat the first game and dug a hole too deep for us to overcome.”
In the second game, the Lions were poised to pick up a win in the double-header. The Lions scored the first run of the game in the first inning but would surrender three runs to the Falcons in the bottom half of the inning.
Down 7-4 in the top of the sixth, the Lions once again staged a potential comeback, as they tacked on two more runs. One run came from a groundout by Hommen, while the other came off a single from Cawley. Again, the Lions came up just short, falling by a score of 7-6.
“In the second game we jumped out on top in the first inning and were pretty aggressive at bat,” Hommen said. “Colleen Cawley had a bunch of great hits for us, but they outhit and outplayed us. They were definitely the better team on Tuesday.”
In the double-header against Rutgers-Newark, the Lions looked like a completely different team. The Lions shut the Scarlet Raiders out in both games with scores of 5-0 and 4-0, led by stellar freshman pitching.
Freshman Kelly Hardman picked up the win in the first game, hurling a complete game shutout, yielding only five hits. Cawley would finish the game with a perfect three-for-three at the plate, while junior Crystal Lee and sophomore Liz Huttner each finished with a pair of hits. The Lions defense was also solid, as they ended the game with a 1-6-3 double play.
Freshman Alex Carisone also pitched phenomenally in the second game as she worked up a masterpiece of her own, recording six strikeouts in a one hit shutout.
Sophomore Ashley Sogluizzo headlined the Lions offense, finishing with a pair of hits and two runs scored.
“Alex has been really throwing the ball very hard lately, and her selection of pitches to choose to throw to a hitter has increased because more and more are really working,” said head coach Sally Miller. “Alex stays very composed on the mound and is in control as a first year pitcher.”
