Doubleheader split for softball

Gillian Mazur, Staff writer

On March 28 at the Mercyhurst Softball Field, Mercyhurst Lakers Softball played a doubleheader versus the Gannon Golden Knights.

During the first game the Lakers came out swinging, winning 8-2 in the seven-inning game. Sophomore catcher/infielder Natalie Graff said, “I’m happy that we started off strong with a win against Gannon because they are our number one competitor.”

Senior Jamie Ward hit a home run giving the Lakers an early 2-0 lead in the first inning, bringing in junior Emma LeGendre. In the bottom of the fourth inning, Graff also hit her first home run of the season bringing in freshman Chloe McQuestion bringing the score to 4-0. “I was pretty excited because it was my first collegiate home run,” Graff said.

At the top of the sixth, the Golden Knights scored twice, bringing the total score to 4-2. By the end of the bottom of the sixth the Lakers responded to the Golden Knights’ runs by scoring four more single runs by freshman Erin Sammarco, senior Paige Crittela, sophomore Sarah Koscho and senior Ellie Dougher. Leading the team with four hits was Dougher followed by senior Taylor Fry with two hits. Senior pitcher Tori Pierucci threw four strikeouts and allowed two earned runs.

In the second five-inning game, the Lakers unfortunately fell to the Golden Knights after coming out strong in the first game. In the first inning, the Golden Knights held an early five lead from which the Lakers could not seem to recover. During the second inning, they scored four more times, five times in the third and one last time in the fourth, winning the game 15-0.

The Golden Knights scored eight home runs in total throughout the second game.

Pitching for the Lakers was freshman Laura Gregory for one inning, Pierucci for two and freshman Josey Moorhead for one.

“We just need to find our rhythm now that we’re back up north and we’re going to go from there. We’re hitting strong, and I think that it’s going to be a really good season,” Graff said.

To catch the Lakers at home at the Mercyhurst Softball Field, come April 5 at 2:30 p.m. to see the team take on Seton Hill University. Seton Hill is 15-9 for the season.