WASHINGTON, Pa. – The Washington & Jefferson College softball team dropped both ends of a non-conference doubleheader with Marietta College at Brooks Park.
The visiting Pioneers broke a sixth inning tie to earn a 5-2 win in game one over the Presidents. W&J rallied back in game two before Marietta scored the eventual game-winning run in the seventh for a 7-6 victory.
Game One Recap – Marietta 5, W&J 2
The Presidents jumped out to an early 1-0 lead when
Brooke McCleester (Johnstown, Pa./Conemaugh Valley) singled home
Rachel Johnson (Orchard Park, N.Y./Orchard Park) in the bottom of the first.
W&J maintained its slim lead until the top of the fourth inning when Marietta used a two-out RBI single to tie the score at 1-1. W&J loaded the bases in the bottom of the frame. However, the Pioneers recorded a strikeout to end the threat.
In the sixth inning, Marietta tallied three runs on four hits to take a 4-1 edge. The Pioneers tacked on an insurance run in the seventh to extend its lead to 5-1. W&J closed the scoring with an RBI single by
Addy Helffrich (Sewickley, Pa./Avonworth)
Kristen Fuertes (West Chester, Pa./West Chester) suffered the loss in game one, dropping her record to 3-3 in the circle this spring. The junior allowed five earned runs over 7.0 innings of work.
McCleester paced the offense in game one with two hits.
Game Two Recap – Marietta 7, W&J 6
W&J opened the scoring in game two, tallying a pair of runs in the bottom of the second inning. Freshmen
Sarah Labbe (Belgrade, Maine/Messalonksee) and
Brooklynn Miller (Martins Ferry, Ohio/Buckeye Local) recorded RBI singles in the frame to give the Presidents the early lead.
Marietta answered quickly, using a two-run home run to tie the score in the top of the third. The Pioneers would score the next three runs to build a 5-2 lead in the top of the fifth inning.
Brooke Stout (Berwick, Pa./Berwick Area Senior) laced an RBI double to score McCleester in the fifth, cutting the deficit to 5-3. However, Marietta tallied a run in the sixth to extend the lead to three.
The Presidents tied the score in the bottom of the sixth with clutch hitting.
Taylor Andres (Bethel Park, Pa./Bethel Park) singled home Johnson to make the score 6-4. Then Helffrich slugged a two-run home run to tie the score at 6-6. Unfortunately for W&J, the visitors scored the eventual game-winning run with a two out single in the seventh.
Helffrich went 2-for-4 with two runs, two RBI and her first home run of the season in game two. Stout and Andres registered two hits apiece in the nightcap.
The Presidents fall to 5-7 overall while Marietta improves to 9-5 in 2019.
W&J is scheduled to host Carlow University for a non-conference doubleheader on Saturday, March 23. Start time is set for 1 p.m. at Brooks Park.
