GRANTHAM, PA. – On Saturday afternoon, the Messiah softball team used consistent hitting to sweep Stevenson University. In game one the Falcons used back-to-back explosive innings to take a commanding 12-1 lead through two innings of play, then adding two more in the bottom of the third. Messiah would surrender four runs through the final two innings, but the Falcons held on to take game one 14-5. In game two, strong pitching and collective hitting allowed the Falcons to breeze past the Mustangs 8-0 in five innings of play.
Up Next:
The Falcons will take on the University of Mary Washington on Monday, Mar. 31 at home.
Game One: Messiah 14 Stevenson 5
How It Happened:
The Falcons fell behind early with the Mustangs striking first with a rbi single. Messiah however, responded with an explosive seven run inning to gain a 7-1 lead. The Falcons took advantage of some Mustang miscues to score the first run.
Fallon Feaser followed it up with a long triple to score one more, setting up
Allie Books single to right field to give Messiah the 3-1 lead. After back-to-back singles from
Brielle Rosario and
Ali Wagner, the Falcons grew their lead to 5-1. Two more errors later capped of the inning for Messiah bringing the score to 7-1.
After a dominant three up three down from Feaser in the circle, the Falcons turned it around adding to their total with a five-run inning. Feaser led things off with a single, allowing
Kandice Schlabach to crush a home run to center field giving Messiah the 9-1 lead. Following a single from Book, Rosario followed her up with a double to score one more. A couple of batters later,
Hannah Dyer roped a single to right field, leading to throwing errors allowing two more runs to come through.
Another quick inning from Feaser, the Falcons looked to add to their total in the bottom of the third. A series of singles from Schlabach,
Kylie Thompson, and Wagner, the Falcons would extend their lead to 14-1.
Stevenson added a run to the board in the top of the fourth, but
Kelli Durbin limited the damage. After a surprising quiet inning from the Falcons, Messiah was hoping to close out the game using the 10-run rule in the top of the fifth. Despite surrendering a run in the fourth and three runs in the fifth, the Falcons held on to win the five-inning game 14-5.
Stats:
Fallon Feaser,
Kandice Schlabach,
Allie Book,
Brielle Rosario, and
Ali Wagner all tallied two hits. The Falcons had a total of nine players snag a hit.
Fallon Feaser pitched three innings, striking out two giving up only one run.
Game Two: Messiah 8 Stevenson 0
The Falcons were able to jump ahead early in the first as
Hannah Dyer and
Lucy Murphy both reached base. Heads up base running from both runners off a
Fallon Feaser hit by pitch gave Messiah the 2-0 lead.
After a quick inning from
Maggie Chinnadurai, the Falcons came back to the plate hunting for more runs.
Ali Wagner led things off with a single, following a Rebeckah Wiley walk, Dyer cleared the bases with a triple to left center, putting the Falcons ahead 4-0.
Following a quiet inning and a half, the Falcons tacked on four more runs in the bottom of the fourth.
Haylie Fenstermaker led things off with a walk, advancing all the way to third. Feaser drove her home with a single, then setting up a triple from
Kandice Schlabach to score another.
Allie Book continued the onslaught with a double, then
Brielle Rosario capped off the inning with a single to bring the score to 8-0. Chinnadurai closed out the game with going 1-2-3, giving Messiha the five-inning win.
Stats:
Ali Wagner and
Brielle Rosario each tallied two hits apiece. Five other Falcons added hits in the 8-0 win.
Maggie Chinnadurai pitched five complete innings, not allowing a single run.
What's Up Next:
The Falcons will host the Eagles of Mary Washington Monday, March. 31st at 2:30p.m.
