Game 1 Box Score | Game 2 Box Score
Grantham, PA — A total 23 hits was only good enough to generate one victory during a MAC Commonwealth double-header with Elizabethtown College Saturday afternoon, as the Messiah College won a 7-5 decision in the first game but dropped a 3-1 loss in the second.
Messiah (10-11, 1-1) came as close as mathematically possible to splitting its hit total between the games, but 11 knocks only equated to one run in the nightcap against the Blue Jays, leaving Falcons' head coach Amy Weaver hungry for what could have been.
"In a way, we were fortunate to win just one game today, but as a coach you always ask 'what if,'" she said. "We made a ton of errors in the first game and had to use a big inning to come back for the win, while in the second game it was simply a case of not being able to string together our hits at the right times."
Weaver's club did make defensive miscues in the opener — six, to be exact — but utilized an explosive, five-run fifth inning to deflate Elizabethtown (6-9, 1-1). Junior Jenna Batchelor got the starting nod in the pitching circle but only lasted the better part of three innings, as three Messiah errors equated to three of the Blue Jays' five runs during that time.
E'Town got on the board in its first at-bat, as a pair of Falcons' errors led to two unearned runs.
Such was the case again in the third inning, as another Messiah error led to a third unearned score. Batchelor did give up a solo home run and a single for two earned runs, however, and Weaver removed Batchelor in favor of freshman Jessica Climenhaga with two outs retired.
"It wasn't that Jenna was throwing poorly, (but) we just felt we had to make a switch to change the momentum of the game," Weaver said. "We were making so many errors, we had to do something."
Climenhaga (3-3) proved to be a calming influence, tossing four and one-third innings while allowing just one hit with two strikeouts. After the offense generated one score in both the bottom of the first and third innings, Messiah's bats would come alive in the fifth to change the complexion of what was a 5-2 Elizabethtown lead.
A double from sophomore Nicole Adams drove in a pair to begin the surge, while a follow-up single from freshman Rebecca Stackhouse plated another two runs. A single from Climenhaga capped the scoring, as Weaver's club generated five runs off of five hits to reclaim a 7-5 lead.
It was then Climenhaga's game from that point on, retiring six of Elizabethtown's last eight batters over the final two innings of play. She allowed just one hit following Messiah's fifth-inning explosion, while the Blue Jays' only other base runner reached via a Falcons' error.
Adams led the offense for Weaver's club, going 3-4 with three RBI and a run scored. Stackhouse finished 2-3 with two RBI, while freshman Rebekkah Funk went 3-3. Sophomore Lindsay Hall recorded her second triple of the year, while Climenhaga's well-timed single brought in the team's sixth RBI of the contest.
"It was a big rally for us, and our bats definitely came alive as the game went on," Weaver said. "It was a good come-from-behind victory with the bats, but we made entirely too many errors."
Defensive miscues would not be a problem in Saturday's second game, as Messiah shored things up in the field and committed just one error. Putting consecutive hits together would be an issue, however, as the Falcons out-hit E'Town by an 11 to five count but still wound up dropping the 3-1 game.
Freshman Corinn Eby (2-4) suffered the pitching loss, starting the game and lasting three innings — all while giving up all three of the Blue Jays' runs. E'Town registered a pair of singles in the opening stanza to take a 1-0 lead, then blasted a two-RBI homer in the second to go up 3-0.
Sensing the need for a pitching change again, Weaver went back to Climenhaga in the fourth, proving to be a good decision once more. The freshman allowed just one hit in four innings of work, providing Messiah with ample opportunities for another comeback.
The Falcons may have very well wound up with a sweep had it not been for their 11 hits being truly scattered, as the team came up with no more than two hits in any inning. Messiah registered its lone run of the game in the fourth, as a triple from Bergakker was driven home by a single from sophomore Megan Rice.
It would be the team's only hits of the inning, however, as the following three batters went down in order to end the threat.
Messiah left a season-high 11 runners on base in the loss.
Funk finished 3-4 in the day's second game, while junior Amy Bowie went 2-3, as did Climenhaga. All of the Falcons hits were singles, save for Bergakker's triple in the fourth.
"We had a lot of hits, but we just couldn't string them together," Weaver said. "You're not going to win ballgames that way."
Messiah will not have to wait long to get back to competitive play, as the team will travel to Gettysburg College Tuesday. Game time is set for 3 p.m.
