Photo GalleryLa Plume, PA – Visiting Marywood University eliminated Keystone College from playoff contention by sweeping a pair of Colonial States Athletic Conference softball games from the Giants in a Strikeout Cancer event on Sunday afternoon at Edmunds Field. The Pacers lift their record to 14-13 overall and 13-5 in conference play while the Giants slip to 10-16 on the spring and 8-12 in the CSAC.
Sunday's opener was a pitcher's duel between Keystone's
Karissa Worobey (Scranton, PA/Scranton) and Marywood's Alyssa Bavaro until the Pacers broke through for four runs in the top of the fourth inning. Stephanie Bagniewski and Kathleen Rossi hit RBI singles before Sarah Recanati was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded. Alexa Scala then hit a sacrifice fly to drive in the visitor's fourth run of the game.
Marywood tacked on a pair of runs in the top of the sixth inning as Heather Schultz came home when Scala hit into a fielder's choice before Brooke Labs hit a sacrifice fly to make it a six-run game.
That was more than enough for Bavaro (5-5), who tossed a complete game four-hitting with one walk and two strikeouts to earn the win.
Bagniewski, Rossi, and Schultz had three hits apiece to lead Marywood, who held a 14-4 advantage in hits for the game.
Worobey suffered the loss after allowing five earned runs in the complete game while fanning four batters in the contest.
Emily Long (Shamokin, PA/Lourdes Regional) led the Giants with a pair of hits while
Katie Thompson (Nazareth, PA/Nazareth Area) and
Sara Schraden (Allentown, PA/William Allen) also collected hits for Keystone in the opener.
Marywood jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first inning of Sunday's second game before tacking on two more runs in the second inning to hold a five-run advantage. Keystone got two runs back in the bottom of the third inning as
Antonette Scialpi (Hughestown, PA/Pittston Area) laced a two-run double right field that brought home both Thompson and
Sarah Stacey (Shickshinny, PA/Lake-Lehman).
The Pacers extended their lead to 7-2 with a pair of unearned runs in the visitor's fourth before
Shannon Dermont (Scranton, PA/West Scranton) laced her first home run of the season over the left field fence to cut the hosts deficit to four runs.
Marywood responded with a pair of runs in the sixth inning to make it a 9-3 contest before Keystone generated three runs in their last at-bats on RBI singles from Schraden, Long, and
Kimberly Rivera (New York, NY/South Bronx Campus), but the Giants were unable to complete the rally.
Emily Perruso (5-4) picked up the win for the Pacers with a complete-game effort for the visitors, who were led by Mariah Runco's 4-4, five RBI game at the plate.
Worobey (8-14) suffered the loss despite allowing just four earned runs in her second complete game of the day and 20
th of the season for Keystone, who go two hits apiece from Thompson, Long, and Stacey in the nightcap.
The Giants will return to action on Tuesday afternoon with a non-conference doubleheader against King's College that is scheduled to start at 3:00 p.m. at Keystone's Edmunds Field in La Plume.
