Grantham, PA – Grantham, PA - The No. 22 Messiah College Falcons (12-2, 2-0) swept the Crusaders of Alvernia University (9-7, 2-2) 6-5 in both games of Thursday's doubleheader. The two walk-off wins mark the first MAC Commonwealth victories of the season for the Falcons.
 
Game One – Messiah 6, Alvernia 5
Both teams posted two runs in the first inning with the Crusaders hitting back-to-back doubles with two outs to take the early 2-0 lead in Game One. Amanda Turner and Mckenzie Miessau each knocked in early runs.
 
The Falcons plated their first two runs by stringing together four straight singles in the bottom of the inning, equalizing things at 2-2. Becky Notte and Amanda Jones picked up the RBI in the frame.
 
Messiah's starting pitcher Courtney Allen struck out the side in the top of the second, but the top of the lineup came through once again for the Crusaders in the top of the third. Three extra base hits, including two homeruns, pushed Alvernia ahead 5-2.
 
Brianna DePriest delivered the first hit of the inning, a double down the left field line, then was followed by a homerun over the left field fence from Aly Shilling. The two-run bomb was her first of the season. Two batters later, Mckenzie Miessau went yard for the first time this year to give the Crusaders the 5-2 lead.
 
The Falcons were on the verge of scoring in the bottom of the third, but failed to make it happen.They had bases loaded with no outs but a strikeout and two pick offs eliminated any chance of scoring.
 
Courtney Allen became the Falcons first baserunner of the frame when she drew a leadoff walk then advanced to third on a double from Becky Notte. As a result, Alvernia decided to make a pitching change. After facing just 13 batters, Taylor Fouracre was replaced by Brittanie Wolfe.
 
Wolfe gave up a bunt single to Amanda Jones before striking out Erin Cressman for the first out. With the bases juiced, the Falcons got caught snoozing on two separate occasions. Amanda Jones was picked off at first after taking a big lead for the second out. Amber Bingaman walked in the next at-bat to load the bases once again, but another aggressive lead by Courtney Allen at third caught the attention of Alvernia's catcher. Amanda Turner threw down to the bag, picking off Allen to close out the frame.
 
After holding the Crusaders in the fourth, the Falcons got two runs back in the bottom of the inning to bring their deficit to just one run. The Falcons posted the runs on two hits and one Alvernia error. Brooke Pompeo and Courtney Allen were credited with the inning's RBI.
 
With a slim 5-4 lead Alvernia pressed the Falcons in the top of the fifth, loading the bases with no outs, but Messiah's reliever Madelyn Yannetti stood tall on the mound. Yannetti, who entered the game to start the frame, got the fourth batter to ground into a double play by fielding the initial hit then tossed the ball to Notte to get the lead runner at the plate. Notte quickly turned and threw to first, beating the runner to the bag for the second out of the inning. Yannetti ended the frame with a strikeout.
 
The Falcons equalized in the bottom of the fifth on a leadoff double from Amanda Jones and an RBI single from Sydney Boreman.
 
The score remained knotted at 5-5 through the sixth and the Crusaders came up empty in the top of the seventh, giving the Falcons one final opportunity to push ahead. In the bottom of the frame the Falcons got the game winner on one hit and one Crusader error.
 
Becky Notte got things going with a leadoff single up the middle then was followed by a sacrifice bunt from Amanda Jones. The third baseman failed to field it cleanly, resulting in an error and runners on first and second. Moments later both runners advanced on a passed ball, setting Erin Cressman up for the game-winner. Unfortunately for the Falcons, Cressman lined out to first base for the inning's first out. In the next at-bat, Tina Lehman drew a pinch-hit walk to load the bases and set up Sydney Boreman for the game-winner. Once again, the Falcons went down on three strikes for the second out. With bases loaded and two outs, Madelyn Yannetti's patient at-bat resulted in an RBI walk for the 6-5 walk-off victory.
 
Becky Notte and Amanda Jones each picked up three hits in the game, while six different Falcons tallied RBI.
 
Yannetti and Allen split the work throughout the seven innings with Yannetti (1-1) earning the win. Through four innings, Allen gave up five runs on six hits and struck out seven. Yannetti limited the Crusaders to just four hits in three innings of work.
 
Game Two - Messiah 6, Alvernia 5
The Falcons experienced a healthy case of déjà vu in Game Two of the double header as they fell behind after just the first inning, then pulled ahead to later end up tied going into the bottom of the seventh. Just like the first game, the Falcons came out on top to the tune of 6-5, also like Game One.
 
The Crusaders scattered four hits and scored three runs through three innings of play, taking an early 4-1 lead over the Falcons.  Messiah's single run came in the bottom of the second when Erin Cressman went yard for the fourth time this season.
 
The Falcons pulled ahead in the fourth, posting four runs three hits. Courtney Allen jump-started the offensive onslaught with a lead off homerun to left field. Following a single from Amanda Jones and back-to-back walks by Cressman and Natalie Lamoreaux, the Crusaders replaced starting pitcher Brittanie Wolfe with reliever Brittany Brown.
 
The Falcons took advantage of the change, drawing a bases loaded walk for one run before Carrie Fix knocked in two more runs on a double to right center.
 
With the 5-3 lead, the Falcons decided to make a pitching change to start the fifth inning. Madelyn Yannetti replaced Fix on the mound and started off strong with a strikeout, but the Crusaders managed to post one run on two hits and draw within one. 
 
Neither team was able to manage much offense through the sixth, yet the Crusaders came through in the top of the seventh to equalize things at 5-5. The damage could have been far worse, though, as Alvernia loaded the bases on a walk, an error, and a single. Fortunately for the Falcons, the Crusaders hit into a double play (much like Game One) where Yannetti picked up the grounder, threw home for the force out and then Notte turned toward first to get the batter out at the bag.
 
With two outs and runners on second and third, the Falcons' defense came up with another strong stand to end the inning. This time, the Crusaders singled to left field, but a solid relay from left (Fix) to short (Jones) to home (Notte) beat the runner for the final out at the plate. When the dust settled, the Crusaders had tied it up at 5-5 on two hits and one error.
 
In their final at-bats, the Falcons came through to complete the sweep. Allen and Notte each singled before Cressman stepped up and knocked the winning run in on a RBI single to left center. This was her 15^th RBI of the season, a team-leading mark.
 
Cressman, Notte, and Allen each picked up two hits in the game, while Fix and Cressman also knocked in two RBI to lead the Falcons.
 
Yannetti earned the win and moves to 2-1 on the season. Through three innings of work, she gave up one run (unearned) on five hits and had one walk and one strikeout. Fix threw four innings and gave up four runs on four hits, while walking three.
 
On the day, the Falcons hit a collective .345 with 19 hits and 12 runs scored. Becky Notte (.625) led the Falcons' offense while Amanda Jones (.571), and Courtney Allen (.429) each hit above .400.
 
The Falcons will travel to Arcadia University Saturday for their next MAC Commonwealth double header. Game One is slated to begin at 12:00 p.m.