GETTYSBURG, Pa. – The Messiah University softball team split a road doubleheader at Gettysburg College on Tuesday afternoon. The Falcons dominated Game One, 11-3, behind a 12-hit performance and narrowly dropped the second contest in walk-off fashion by a score of 5-4.
Lydia Collison earned the Game One win as
Alexa Burger tallied three RBI at the dish. In Game Two,
Maggie Chinnadurai pitched 6.1 strong innings, recording two hits and an RBI at the dish.
After the doubleheader split, Messiah's overall record stands at 11-6.
Game One – Messiah 11, Gettysburg 3
The Falcons got on the board early in Game One, scoring on an error off the bat of
Hannah Dyer.
Ali Wagner plated the game's first run on the error after reaching on an infield single. Before Collison took the circle, Messiah had itself an early 1-0 edge.
Despite allowing a leadoff single in the bottom of the first inning, Collison shut down the Bullets' lineup for the first few frames. The junior pitcher issued two strikeouts in the bottom of the second frame, preserving the 1-0 Messiah lead and allowing the Falcons to open up the game with a thunderous four-run frame in the third inning.
Messiah scored four times on three hits, taking advantage of three defensive miscues from Gettysburg. Wagner recorded her second hit of the day on an RBI-single to begin the scoring as the Falcons tacked on two more runs on errors. Before the Bullets could escape the inning,
Elianna Litwin reached on an infield single to score Dyer. Messiah took control of the game with a 5-0 lead. Collison continued the Falcon momentum, pitching a one-two-three inning in the bottom of the third inning to solidify the five-run lead.
Collison began to cruise, dominating the Bullets' lineup and not allowing a runner to reach base in the third, fourth, and fifth innings. The Falcons' offense erupted once again in the sixth and seventh innings, combining for six runs, highlighted by a five-run sixth inning. The big hit of the inning came off the bat of
Alexa Burger, a bases-clearing, three-run double to left-center field.
Kelli Durbin pitched the bottom of the seventh inning to seal The Falcons' victory.
Messiah totaled 12 hits in the Game One rout as Burger (3) and Dyer (2) each issued multi-RBI games. Collison earned her sixth win of the season, improving her record to 6-1.
Game Two – Gettysburg 5, Messiah 4
The Falcons had a chance to sweep the Bullets in Game Two and turned to
Maggie Chinnadurai. The sophomore pitcher made her sixth start of the season and pitched well in the opening three frames of the contest. The Bullets scored just one run in the first three innings as Messiah held a 2-1 lead behind a two-run single from
McKenzie Shannon in the top of the third inning.
Gettysburg's offense struck in the bottom of the third inning, tying the game with a two run inning. The Bullets scored another run in the bottom of the fourth inning to claim its first lead (4-3) of the doubleheader since the opening frame of Game One.
Trailing by one run in the sixth inning, the Falcons managed to tie the game with a clutch RBI-single from Chinnadurai to plate
Rebekah Wiley. Chinnadurai continued her momentum in the circle in the bottom half of the frame, retiring the Bullets in order. Messiah had no offensive chances in the top of the seventh, giving Gettysburg the opportunity to win in walk-off fashion. The Bullets led off the inning with a double, advancing their runner to third on a groundout in the following at-bat. With the winning on third base, Komst singled up the middle, plating the game-deciding run. Gettysburg narrowly grabbed Game Two, 5-4, to earn a split in the doubleheader.
Chinandurai, in addition to pitching a stellar game, was the only Falcon to record multiple hits for Messiah (2) in the loss.
What's Next
The Falcons return to action on Thursday, Mar. 23, facing Susquehanna University in a home doubleheader beginning at 3:00 p.m.
