MEADVILLE, Pa. – The Allegheny softball team split a Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) doubleheader against Saint Vincent at home Wednesday (April 19), winning game one 6-1 before falling 2-0 in game two.
Game One – Allegheny 6, Saint Vincent 1
The Bearcats got on the board in the second, taking advantage of a pair of walks and a hit to plate a run.
Trailing 1-0 in the third,
Halle Book (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Catholic) was walked with one out before
Aleya Belardinelli (Melbourne, Fla./West Shore) singled for the second time in the game. A walk to
Cameron Long (Midlothian, Va./Midlothian) loaded the bases for
Sophia Godzak (Belle Vernon, Pa./Belle Vernon). Godzak came through with a double off the fence, scoring Book and Belardinelli.
Sofia Genareo (Lakewood, N.Y./Southwestern Central) followed up with a standup triple to right field, clearing the bases and making it 4-1.
Belardinelli hit her third single of the game to lead off the fifth. Long was walked, and both moved up on a wild pitch. Godzak would drive Belardinelli in on a fielder's choice to make it 5-1. Another wild pitch would bring Long home, moving the lead to 6-1.
The Bearcats would load the bases with one out in the seventh, but a pair of pop ups got the Gators out of the inning unscathed, sealing the PAC victory.
Inside the Box
- Belardinelli got it done on both sides. As a pitcher, she earned her 13th win of the season, the most for a Gator in a decade. In 7.0 innings, she struck out nine while allowing just one run on five hits. At the plate, she went three-for-three with two runs scored.
- Godzak drove in three runs with a double and came across the plate once.
- Genareo had a standup triple that drove in two runs.
- Long scored a pair of runs while Book also came across the plate.
Game Two – Saint Vincent 2, Allegheny 0
Neither team was able to crack the scoreboard until the fifth inning. The Bearcats took advantage of three hits and a pair of errors to score two runs.
Belardinelli led off the sixth with a single to right center. Long followed up with an infield single on a bunt down the first base line. However, the Bearcats got out of trouble with a double play and a foul out.
Samantha Phillips (Pittsburgh, Pa./Mount Lebanon) reached first safely on an error to start the bottom of the seventh. However, the Gators were unable to bring the runner home as they fell 2-0.
Inside the Box
- Belardinelli, Long and Samantha Dzierba (Colden, N.Y./Orchard Park) had singles for the Gators.
- Godzak was walked twice.
- Dzierba allowed just one earned run on four hits while striking out two.
News and Notes
- The Gators moved to 22-8 overall and 12-4 in PAC play this year.
- This marks the first contests between the two programs.
- Belardinelli picked up her 13th win of the season, the most for a Gator in a decade.
- The win in game one clinched a spot in the PAC playoffs for the Gators.
Up Next
The Gators return to the road Friday (April 21) when they travel to Washington & Jefferson for a PAC doubleheader.