CLERMONT, Fla.— The Allegheny College softball team split their games in Clermont, Fla. for a second straight day on Monday (March 18).
The Gators opened with a 9-6 win over Western New England before falling by the same mark to Hamilton in game two.
Game One – Allegheny 9, Western New England 6
The Gators got on the scoreboard early. In the top of the first,
Samantha Valera hit a one-out triple to right field. Then with two outs,
Jessica Valerino hit a bloop single to shallow right, bringing Valera across for the first run of the game.
Allegheny continued to hit well in the second.
Hayley Behr led off with the Gators' first home run of the season, sailing over the centerfield wall to make it 2-0.
Joplin Osgood recorded her first hit with a single up the middle.
Maria DiDonato followed up with a double to the left center gap, bringing Osgood around from first for the third run. With two-outs, Valera hit a hard shot through the left side of the infield, bringing DiDonato around to make it 4-0.
The Golden Bears took advantage of an error and some walks in the second as they put up two runs to cut the lead in half. In the third, Western New England chopped the lead down to one with a sac fly, making it 4-3.
The Gators had a pair of hits in the top of the fourth, but the Golden Bears were able to get out of the jam.
Kyleigh Cason led off the fifth with a single up the middle. Behr then safely reached on a bunt down the third baseline. After a fielder's choice, Osgood moved the runners up to second and third. DiDonato followed up with short pop up that fell between the pitcher and the first baseman down the line, scoring Behr to make it 5-2. After
Kelly Lafferty earned a walk, Valera drove another ball to right center, bringing home
Paige Ziggas, DiDonato and Lafferty to bring the lead to 8-3.
Western New England led off the fifth with a double by Dina DiBlasio. Jamie Cookingham followed up with a single. An Emilie Decker hit brought the two runners home to make it 8-6.
Valerino earned a walk to start off the sixth. Cason came through with a double down the right field line, moving pinch runner
Emily Cramer to third. Behr beat out an infield single, scoring Cramer to make it 9-6.
The Golden Bears threatened in the final two innings, but
Tori Vradenburg held down the fort for the save as the Gators collected the 9-6 win.
The Gator offense produced 15 hits in the game. Valera led with four RBI and a run scored. Her four-for-five performance included a triple, a double and two singles. Behr completed Valera's cycle with a homerun to go alongside a pair of singles. She batted two runs in while crossing the plate twice herself. Cason and Osgood had two hits apiece. DiDonato also had two hits to go with two RBI and two runs scored.
Kala Mahen picked up the win, going 2.2 innings in relief, allowing three earned runs. Vradenburg had the save, going three innings with four strikeouts and no runs allowed.
Game Two - Hamilton 9, Allegheny 6
Hamilton threatened in the first with runners on second and third with one out. However, Ziggas caught a fly ball in left field and gunned the runner down heading to home for the double play to end the inning.
The Gators took the lead in the bottom of the frame. With two outs, Behr struck her second home run of the day, this time to left field, to score the game's first run.
In the second,
Mariah Nablo reached on an error with two outs. After she stole second, DiDonato drove her home with a RBI single to right field, bringing the score to 2-0 in favor of the Gators.
In the top of the third, the Continentals took advantage of three hits as they tied the game with a pair of runs.
The Gators loaded the bases with a pair singles and walk in the bottom of the third. However, Hamilton got out of the jam unscathed to keep the game tied at two.
In the top of the fourth, Hamilton took advantage of Gator miscues to produce five runs on three hits to take a 7-2 lead.
Ziggas reached first on a fielder's choice, and stole second to get in scoring position. Behr brought her home with a double to the right center gap, bringing the game within four runs.
In the fifth, Cason earned a walk. Osgood moved pinch runner Cramer to second.
Delaney Harrison-Peters moved both runners on a sac bunt before
Jessica Gordon brought Cramer home on a ground out to cut the lead to 7-4.
Hamilton tacked two on in the top of the seventh to take a 9-4 lead into the final frame.
Valerino led-off with a single, followed by a Cason double, moving pinch runner
Lindsey Crovak to third. Osgood brought Crovak home on a groundout, cutting the lead to 9-5. Gordon then brought Cason home with a single for the Gators' sixth run. However, the rally fell short as the Gators fell 9-6.
Behr and Gordon had two RBI apiece to lead the offense. Valerino, Osgood, Cason and Behr had two hits each.
The Gators are back in action tomorrow against Hope and Ripon.
