Scranton, Pa. – Marywood University posted a pair of Colonial States Athletic Conference softball victories on Friday afternoon, taking both games for Keystone College in the 2
nd Annual Pink Game between the local rivals to raise money and awareness for cancer research. The Pacers lift their overall record to 12-10 including a 9-3 mark in conference play while the Giants fall to 7-17 this spring and 2-8 in the CSAC.
Game 1 Keystone took a 1-0 lead in their first at-bats of Friday opener when
Sarah Stacey (Shickshinny, PA/Lake-Lehman) scored on an RBI groundout by
Lindsey Bucklaw (Carbondale, PA/Carbondale Area). Marywood leveled the game at one-apiece on an RBI double by Kathleen Rossi in the bottom of the second inning before the Giants went back in front in the visitor's third as
Emily Long (Shamokin, PA/Our Lady of Lourdes Regional) single to right field to bring home
Katie Thompson (Nazareth, PA/Nazareth Area).
Malory Porada tied the game up at 2-2 in the bottom of the fourth inning, hitting into a fielder's choice to drive in Kate O'Meara with the tying run. Marywood then scored three unearned runs in the home fifth to take a 5-2 lead by taking advantage of two hits and three Keystone errors to provide the final score line.
O'Meara went 3-3 with three runs scored while Rossi had two hits to lead Marywood. Kirstie Alvarez picked up the win in the circle after allowing two runs on five hits to go along with a pair of strikeouts for the Pacers.
Long led Keystone with a pair of hits in the opener while Thompson, Stacey, and
Shannon Dermont (Scranton, PA/West Scranton) added hits in the loss.
Alyssa Hughes (Sellersville, PA/Pennridge) suffered the setback on the rubber despite allowing just two earned runs on eight hits to go along with three strikeouts in a complete game effort.
Game 2 Keystone again took a 1-0 lead in the first inning of Friday's nightcap as Thompson scored on a Marywood ball on a ball hit by Long, but the Pacers leveled the contest in the bottom of the frame on an RBI double by Brooke Labs.
The Giants took a 4-1 lead in the visitor's second, scoring three runs on four hits and one Marywood error. Stacey drove in
Samantha Monetti (Toms River, NJ/Toms River North) with a single to left field before Long brought home Thompson with a single to center. Bucklaw followed with an RBI base hit up the middle to bring in Stacey to give Keystone the three-run edge.
The Giants held the lead until the bottom of the fourth inning when Marywood erupted for 10 runs on seven hits and three errors to take control of the game and neither team was able to push across another run in the final three and a half innings as the hosts completed the sweep.
Labs led the Pacers with three hits and three RBIs while Rossi and Alexa Scala had two hits apiece. Katie Siano picked up the win for Marywood after allowing four runs on 10 hits to go along with a pair of K's in five innings before turning the ball over to Alvarez, who tossed two scoreless innings.
Thompson, Stacey, Long, and
Kaylee Hartman (Red Bank, NJ/Red Bank Regional) had two hits apiece to lead Keystone's offense in the game two setback.
Emily Faulkner (Laceyville, PA/Wyalusing Valley) was charged with the loss after yielding five earned runs on six hits to go along with one strikeout in two innings,
Nicole Shay (Thompson, PA/Susquehanna Community) allowed five runs – none of which were earned – in 0.2 innings while Hughes allowed just two hits in 3.1 scoreless innings in relief.
Up Next Keystone will travel to Baltimore, Maryland tomorrow for a CSAC doubleheader against Notre Dame of Maryland University. First pitch between the Giants and Gators is set for 1:00 p.m. at Druid Hill Park.
