WINTER HAVEN, Fla. – The Washington & Jefferson College softball team opened its annual trip to The PFX Spring Games with a pair of wins Sunday in Winter Haven, Fla. The Presidents began the day with a 7-4 come from behind win over Manchester University before adding a 11-5 win over Knox College. W&J's offense guided them throughout the day, as they totaled 32 hits during the sweep.
W&J improves to 4-0 overall. The loss dropped Manchester to 2-1 and Knox fell to 2-10.
W&J 7, Manchester 4 (Game One)
The Presidents used a strong offensive effort to pick up a 7-4 win in the opener vs. Manchester. W&J finished with 16 hits, five of which went for extra bases against the Spartans.
Manchester took an early 4-0 lead with a four-spot in the bottom of the second inning. The Spartans collected three hits and took advantage of two W&J errors and three walks in the inning.
W&J cut into the deficit in the top of the fourth inning when they broke through for three runs.
Kasey Scears (Washington, Pa./Chartiers Houston) opened the frame with a double and moved to third on a single by
Sydney Petrowski (Lemont Furnace, Pa./Connellsville). After
Hannah Allen (Irwin, Pa./Penn Trafford) reached to load the bases,
Deanna Gratton (Monroeville, Pa./Gateway) drove home a pair with a double.
Aliya Schraeder (Bridgeville, Pa./South Fayette) added an RBI infield single to plate Allen.
The Presidents took the lead for good in the fifth when they scored twice. Scears singled with one out and moved to second on an error by Manchester. Allen would single home Scears to tie the score at 4-4. A batter later, Gratton scored Petrowski with an RBI groundout to give W&J a 5-4 edge.
The Red and Black tacked on an insurance run in the top of the sixth to strengthen its lead to 6-4.
Five Presidents recorded multi-hit efforts against Manchester. Gratton led the Presidents with three hits while Schraeder, Eckenrode, Scears and
Izzy DiPietro-Harvey (Pittsburgh, Pa./Taylor Allderdice) finished with two each.
Petrowski improved to 2-0 in the circle by tossing all seven innings. She allowed four runs (three earned) and scattered eight hits. She struck out five and walked three.
W&J 11, Knox 5 (Game Two)
The Presidents scored early and often in game two. W&J recorded at least one run in each of the six innings that they batted as they collected their fourth-straight win.
Izzy DiPietro-Harvey doubled home Eckenrode to open the scoring in the bottom of the first. W&J struck for three more runs in the bottom of the second. Eckenrode doubled home
Mackenzie Boyd (Beaver, Pa./Beaver) to make it 2-0.
Izzy DiPietro-Harvey produced a sac fly and Schmucker tacked on an RBI double to push the lead to 4-0 after two innings.
Knox got on the board with two runs in the third inning to trim the deficit to 4-2. W&J answered with two more runs in the bottom of the frame.
Olivia Vecchio (Eighty Four, Pa. / Ringgold) singled home
Kyra Blauth (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Hills) and
Jordan Hinz (Ellicott City, Pa./Centennial) added an RBI groundout to boost the lead to 6-2.
Blauth, the North Hills product, turned in another strong effort with three hits. Her RBI single up the middle made it 8-2 Presidents after four innings.
Scears smashed a two-run home run to deep center in the fifth. The home run swelled the laed to 10-3 after five. Knox tallied two runs in the sixth before W&J closed the scoring at 11-5 with a run in the sixth.
Five Presidents finished with multiple hits in game two. Eckenrode and Blauth paced the Presidents with three hits apiece. Schmucker and Boyd added two hits each.
Hinz picked up the win as she improved to 2-0.
On Deck: W&J will face the College at Old Westbury and St. Catherine during the day of competition Monday at Legends Way in Clermont, Fla.
