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XML Box Score 2 Grantham, PA – The Messiah College softball team picked up a very important split against Lebanon Valley College (22-3, 11-1) Wednesday. The Falcons (19-7, 8-2) dropped game one 4-0, but rallied to take game two 3-0.
Krista Ammon broke a scoreless tie with an RBI to start a three-run sixth inning that led the Falcons to a 3-0 win over Lebanon Valley in game two. Messiah's pitcher
Claressa Mees (8-2) threw a one-hit gem, handing Lebanon Valley just their third loss of the season and their first in the Commonwealth Conference.
Lebanon Valley's pitcher Sam Derr (13-0) allowed just five hits and struck out nine batters across seven innings to lead the Dutchmen to a 4-0 win over Messiah in game one. The Dutchmen scored single runs in the first and second innings before getting two unearned runs in the fourth.
Becky Notte went 3-3 at the plate for the Falcons and
Mallory Rutledge took the hard luck loss; Rutledge allowed seven hits and one earned run in seven innings.
Game OneThe Dutchmen took the early 1-0 lead on a one hit, one run, and one error top of the first then added an additional run in the second for the 2-0 advantage. A big fourth inning extended Lebanon Valley's lead to 4-0, which held for the rest of the game.
In the fourth, the Falcons were oh-so close to coming up with a big play, but their efforts just weren't enough. In the very first at-bat, Messiah's right fielder
Nicole Blantz tracked a deep fly ball off the bat of Jordyn Miller all the way back to the warning track. As she stretched to make the overhead catch, the ball popped out of her glove when her body hit the ground, giving Miller a lead off double.
After a line out and a walk, the Dutchmen had runners on first and second with only one out. Fortunately for the Falcons the next batter, Angela Harris, hit the ball sharply toward second base, setting up the double play. But the play didn't go as planned. Messiah's second baseman,
Emily Quatrale, fielded the ball but it got stuck in her glove as she tried to toss it to shortstop
Amanda Jones; loading the bases for the Dutchmen.
In the next at-bat, Mary Readinger delivered a well-struck ball toward Jones at short, but she was unable to make the play and an error was charged. Two runs scored on the miscue.
In the end, Lebanon Valley scored two runs (both unearned) on one hit and two errors.
The Falcons' offense was limited to only five hits in the first game. Only three Falcons -
Brooke Pompeo,
Emily Quatrale, and
Becky Notte (3) - managed to get hits against Lebanon Valley's ace. With so few hits, the Falcons had a tough time generating substantial offense. Their best chance of scoring came in the bottom of the fifth, but a great defensive play quickly squashed Messiah's chances.
Krista Ammon took advantage of a throwing error by the Dutchmen's third baseman, to become the Falcons' first base-runner in the fifth. A sacrifice bunt from
Nicole Blantz moved Ammon to second, putting her in scoring position. In the next at-bat,
Emily Quatrale ripped the ball toward the right field line, but Lebanon Valley's Angela Harris made the diving catch for the second out. Derr retired the final batter, stranding Ammon at second and diminishing the Falcons' hope.
Both teams picked up two hits in their next plate appearances, but neither team could elevate the score, giving the Dutchmen the 4-0 victory.
Game TwoClaressa Mees held the Dutchmen's prolific offense to only one hit and was backed up by a solid Messiah defense in the second game of the double header. The Falcons allowed just six Dutchmen to reach base, yet only one of them made it past second base.
Mees fell short of perfect with three walks and one hit by pitch, yet she was in complete command, forcing 15 ground outs, two fly outs and striking out three.
Offensively, the Falcons created numerous scoring chances throughout the game. In the second they had runners on first and second with just one out, but the Dutchmen's defense came through to get the lead runner then force a ground out to end the inning.
In the fourth,
Courtney Allen's (1-3) leadoff triple set the stage for a Messiah run, but another solid defensive play by Lebanon Valley got her out at the plate. Moments later, a base running error by the Falcons proved costly when Mees lined into a double play to end the inning.
After two innings of near misses, the Falcons broke things open in the sixth, scoring three runs on four hits and an error.
Krista Ammon (double), Caressa Mess (single), and Quatrale (single) each contributed RBI hits to give the Falcons the 3-0 lead.
The Dutchmen were unable to answer in the top of the seventh, giving the Falcons a very important Commonwealth Conference win.
The Falcons look to carry their momentum into tomorrow's doubleheader with Stevenson University. Last season, the Mustangs ousted Messiah from the Commonwealth Championship Tournament in an extra-inning nail-biter. Stevenson won the game 2-1 with two doubles in the ninth inning. Messiah hopes to avenge their loss Thursday with the first of two games beginning at 3:30 p.m.
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