3/30/22
 
NEW ROCHELLE, NY – The Lackawanna College Softball team piled up 26 runs on 32 hits on their way to a doubleheader sweep over the Monroe College Mustangs on Wednesday afternoon at Flowers Park in New York.
 
The Falcons (12-9) never trailed in game one, winning 13-4 in five innings, and overcame a 7-2 deficit in game two, eventually winning 13-8. Lackawanna College had 13 extra base hits across both games, with Savannah Glover leading the charge, going a combined 4-for-9 with three runs scored and five RBIs, hitting three doubles and a homerun.
 
Game One Recap: Lackawanna College 13 – 4 Monroe College (5 Innings)
Game one was all Falcons from start to finish, as Lackawanna piled on nine runs in the second inning alone, en route to a 13-4 win in five innings.
 
Lackawanna College (11-9) brought 14 batters to the plate in the second inning, scoring nine runs to blow open a 2-0 lead, and pounded out 14 hits, including seven extra base hits, to power past Monroe. Five different Falcons had multiple hits, and four batters scored multiple runs. Savannah Glover was 2-for-4 with two runs scored, two RBIs, and a pair of doubles, while Meghan Fritz was 2-for-3 with two runs scored and two RBIs, and a double for herself. Catarena Sommers added two hits, two runs, and two RBIs, along with a double. MacKayla Quick got the win, her fourth of the year, giving up four runs on seven hits, while striking out nine batters.  
 
Lackawanna wasted little time in the top of the first, thanks to a lead-off Fritz single, followed by a Glover double to left field, immediately putting the Falcons up 1-0. They'd add another when Madison McVicar brought Glover home on a ground out to short, staking the Falcons to a 2-0 lead. Quick pitched around a single in the bottom frame, striking out a pair of batters, and setting Lackawanna College up for their big second inning.
 
Sommers led the inning off with a single to short, and Quick followed up with another hard hit ball to short, reaching on an error, and advancing to second, putting runners on second and third with nobody out. Jennifer Wolak cashed in with a single to right field, scoring a pair of runs to make it 4-0, Lackawanna. A Kira Ryan single kept things rolling, and Fritz brought both runners home with a line drive double to left field, extending the lead to 6-0. Glover drove Fritz in with a double of her own, and a batter later, Emma McNally hit a fly ball to center for the first out, bringing Glover in to make it 8-0. Lackawanna added three more runs, thanks to a two-RBI double from Sommers, and a Ryan single to center field.  
 
The Mustangs (4-14) got a run back in the bottom of the second with a lead-off inside the park homerun, but Quick got the next three outs in succession, including a pair of strikeouts to keep it at 11-1, Lackawanna in front. Monroe would add another run in the bottom of the third on a one-out double, and then another run in the bottom of the fourth on a two-out single, bringing the margin to 11-3.
 
Lackawanna College, after two quiet innings at the plate, got a two-out double from McVicar in the top of the fifth to put a runner on, when McNally launched a laser to right field that got behind the outfielder, allowing both McVicar and McNally to get home on a two-run inside the park homer, giving the Falcons a 13-3 lead heading into the bottom of the fifth. Monroe would answer with another inside the park homer in the bottom of the fifth, but Quick got the final two outs to activate the sportsmanship rule and end the game, giving the Falcons the victory.  
 
Game Two Recap: Lackawanna College 13 – 8 Monroe College



Monroe made Lackawanna College sweat a little more in game two, but the hits kept coming for the Falcons, who had 18 knocks on their way to a 13-8 victory.  
 
The Falcons (12-9) fell behind 7-2 after three innings, then scored eleven runs over the final four innings to eventually pull away with the win. Lackawanna had 13 runs on 18 hits, including six extra base hits, and a pair of homeruns. Savannah Glover was 2-for-5 with three RBIs, a run scored, and one of those homeruns, while Catarena Sommers went 3-for-5 with two RBIs and two runs scored. Jennifer Wolak went 3-for-3 with three RBIs and a run scored, and Kira Ryan was 2-for-4 with two RBIs and a run scored. Wolak picked up the win, her first of the season, giving up a run and a hit in five innings of relief work, while striking out four batters.  
 
As good as the first game went for Lackawanna, the second game started poorly, as the Falcons went down in order in the top of the first on three straight strikeouts. Monroe (4-15) got things going in their bottom half, getting a leadoff single on starting pitcher Tess Ruschman, with the runner eventually coming around to score. A two-run inside the park homer followed, and the Falcons were behind 3-0 before the first out was recorded. Ruschman would settle in, getting the three outs she needed to get the Falcons out of the first.  
 
Lackawanna would get a run back in the top of the second, thanks to a Sommers double that brought one runner home. They had the bases loaded with nobody out, but a line out to short let the Mustangs pick off a Falcon runner at third, quickly making it two outs, and a pop out ended the threat, stranding a pair of runners. Ruschman pitched around a pair of singles in the second, and the Falcons got another run in the top of the third, this time on a leadoff inside the park homerun from Meghan Fritz off a liner to left field.  
 
Leading 3-2 in the bottom of the third, the Mustangs hit the gas pedal. Back-to-back singles, followed by an error, put runners on first and third with nobody out. A double steal got Monroe a run, and a single to right field made it 5-2, Mustangs. Still with nobody out, a shot to center turned into another inside the park homer, extending the Mustang lead to 7-2, and chasing Ruschman from the game. Wolak stepped into the circle, and pitched around a walk, and got the Falcons out of the inning.  
 
That seemed to finally wake the Falcon bats up, as the top of the fourth marked the start of a Lackawanna comeback. A leadoff walk by Skylynn Gilligan, followed by a one-out single from MacKayla Quick, put two on for the Falcons. Wolak would step in and help herself out, slapping a double to right field, scoring Gilligan to make it 7-3. A Ryan bunt single scored another run, and, after a strikeout, Glover stepped in and delivered a two-out double, scoring a pair of runs to bring the Falcons within one at 7-6 heading into the bottom of the fourth.   
 
After a 1-2-3 inning, the Falcons completed their comeback in the top of the fifth. A McNally single, followed by a Gilligan walk, put two runners on with nobody out. Sommers drove in McNally with a single to left field, and, after a fly out, Wolak helped her cause again, singling to center to score Gilligan and bring home the go-ahead run, making it 8-7, Falcons. Ryan singled on a pop fly to right, scoring Sommers, and giving the Falcons a 9-7 lead to protect, heading into the bottom of the fifth. Wolak would make it stand up, pitching around a walk to fire up another zero for the Falcons.
 
In the top of the sixth, Lackawanna College added another pair of runs to extend their lead. A pair of two-out singles put two runners on, and a Quick single to short brought one run in, followed by Wolak, again, this time with an RBI-double, making it 11-7. She'd follow that up with another strong bottom frame, sending the Falcons to the top of the seventh, where they'd add another pair of runs, courtesy of an inside the park homer from Glover, and an RBI-single from Gilligan.
 
Monroe got a run back on another inside the park homer to center field, but Wolak settled right back in, inducing three straight groundouts to end the inning, and the game, giving the Falcons the 13-8 win, their third in a row.   
 
The next match-up for Lackawanna is scheduled for Thursday, March 31^st, when the Falcons are due to open their home slate for the 2022 season against SUNY Orange, in doubleheader action. The first game is set to start at 3:00pm and the second game is scheduled for a 5:00pm ET start. Each game will be played at Scranton HS's softball field, on Providence Road in Scranton, across the street from Scranton HS. Both games will be streamed live via the Lackawanna College Athletics YouTube Channel at www.lackawannafalcons.com/YouTube, weather permitting.