Game 1 Box Score I
Game 2 Box Score
York, PA -
Claressa Mees completed seven innings of four-hit ball on Monday, leading Messiah to a 7-1 win on the road at York College. The freshman hurler struck out four batters and allowed just a single walk, with the Spartans' lone run crossing the plate unearned in the third inning.
Courtney Allen,
Becky Notte, and
Katie Souders all had two hits for the Falcons.
In game two, the Falcons posted runs in four of seven innings to get the 5-2 win and complete the sweep.
Mallory Rutledge (6-3) threw five innings for the win, while
Sarah Dietrich finished out the game to pick up her first save of the season.
"It's nice to pick up two wins after Easter break," head coach
Amy Weaver said. "A few days off definitely seemed to pay off. We were smart on the bases and hit the ball fairly well. I'm pleased with the way we are playing right now."
The Falcons(15-7) took the early lead in game one, posting three runs in the top of the first. Aggressive base-running and two Spartan (4-18) errors put the Falcons on top.
Messiah's scoring chances continued in the third as back-to-back doubles by Notte and
Stephanie Schell pushed another run across the plate. In the bottom of the inning, the Spartans posted their only run as a result of two errors by the Falcons.
Two more defensive errors gave York another scoring opportunity in the fourth, but Mees shut things down quickly with a strike out and ground out to end the inning.
In the top of the seventh, the Falcons extended their lead on doubles from Notte, Souders, and Coffey. Their efforts drove in three runs and solidified Mees's seventh win of the season. Offensively, Notte (2-for-2) led the Falcons with two doubles, two walks, and two RBI's. Schell (1-for-3) and Souders (2-for-4) each drove in two runs.
The Falcons took their momentum into game two, scoring single runs in both the first and second innings.
In the first, Allen earned a lead-off walk to become the Falcons' first base-runner. In the next at-bat, a sacrifice bunt by
Nicole Blantz moved Allen into scoring position.
Brooke Pompeo delivered a single to right field that allowed Allen to safely cross the plate.
The Falcons scored their second run of the game in the second inning on the bat of
Natalie Fritz. In only her 11th plate appearance, Frtiz drove the ball over the fence for her first collegiate homerun.
Rutledge held the Spartans scoreless until the bottom of the third when an error by the Falcons gave York their first run.
With the 2-1 lead and a York squad that wouldn't go down without a fight, the Falcons needed to score.
In the top of the fifth, they did just that. Allen drew her second lead-off walk of the game and put herself in scoring position with a stolen base. Allen found herself on third when Blantz grounded out to the right side of the field. In the next at-bat, Pompeo's patience drew another walk to give Messiah a first-and-third situation. Pompeo wasted no time on the bases, stealing second to give Notte a golden opportunity to break things open. Notte came through with a double to left center that allowed both runners to score.
The Spartans responded in the bottom half of the inning with a solo homerun by Jena Ruby.
The Falcons scored their final run in the sixth after back-to-back walks and a sacrifice bunt put runners on second and third. A ground-out by Blantz and heads-up base-running by Fritz gave the Falcons a much-needed insurance run.
In the sixth inning, Dietrich took the mound for the Falcons. The change of pace kept the Spartans off-balance in the sixth, but the seventh proved to be problematic.
A walk and two defensive errors by the Falcons loaded the bases for the Spartans, but an eventual strike out and ground-out gave Messiah the win. Dietrich picked up her first save of the year, while Rutledge moved to 6-3.
The Falcons will take on another non-conference opponent on Wednesday when they host the Lions of The College of New Jersey. The double header will begin at 3:00 p.m.
