4/10/22
 
SCRANTON, Pa. – The Lackawanna College Softball team battled the weather, as well as the nationally ranked Brookdale CC squad on Sunday, earning a hard-fought split in the Region XIX crossover doubleheader at Scranton HS. The Falcons topped the seventh-ranked Jersey Blues 9-1 in five innings in game one, but Brookdale returned the favor with an 11-2 thrashing in six innings in the second game, as both teams shared the spoils on a blustery Sunday afternoon in the Electric City.
 
Lackawanna College (13-12) managed to overcome an early 1-0 deficit in game one with strong second, third, and fifth innings to push the game into the sportsmanship rule at 9-1 after five. Brookdale (14-4) managed to do a lot more offensively in game two, taking advantage of five Falcon errors, and managing to put eleven runs on the board, despite stranding 21 baserunners.
 
Game One Recap: Lackawanna College 9 – 1 Brookdale CC (5 Innings)
After falling behind 1-0 early, Lackawanna College scored six runs in the second and third innings, and plated three more in the fifth to come away with a 9-1 victory in five innings in game one. The Falcons (13-11) pounded out ten hits, including three extra base knocks, to help the cause. Mackayla Quick got the win, her fifth of the year, allowing just one run, unearned, on four hits, striking out three batters. She helped her cause at the plate, going 3-for-3 with a run scored. Kira Ryan drove in three runs, going 1-for-3, and scoring a pair herself. Catarena Sommers and Jennifer Wolak both went 2-for-3, as Sommers scored two runs and drove in another, and Wolak scored three runs of her own.
 
Early on, it looked like Brookdale (13-4) was going to take control. With runners on second and third and two out, an error on the infield allowed a runner to cross, making it 1-0, Jersey Blues. Brookdale had runners on second and third, but Quick got a fly out to end the inning.
 
After a quiet bottom frame from Lackawanna, the top of the second smelled like more danger, after a lead-off double. Later in the inning, with two away and runners on second and third, a walk loaded the bases, but Quick got her second straight inning-ending pop out to end the threat and strand the runners, keeping the Falcons within 1-0.
 
In the bottom of the second, Lackawanna got some two out magic going when Wolak smacked a single up the middle. Quick followed with her own, and a double-steal put runners on second and third with two away. With Kira Ryan at the plate, the centerfielder delivered with a two-RBI single to left, putting the Falcons on top at 2-1. Meghan Fritz stepped in and brought Ryan home with a double, staking Lackawanna to a 3-1 lead after two.
 
Brookdale was retired in order, and the Falcons added more in the bottom of the third. A one-out single from Emma McNally put a runner on, and McNally stole second with two out. Sommers would push her home with a line-drive double to left, and then an error at third base on a ground ball from Wolak ended disastrously for the Jersey Blues, as both Sommers and Wolak eventually come around to score, making it 6-1, Falcons. Quick had a triple with two away, but a strikeout ended the Lackawanna threat.
 
Neither team would get anything going in the fourth inning, and Quick pitched around a single with three strikeouts to keep Brookdale off the board in the top of the fifth. The Falcons would add what they needed in the bottom of the fifth.  Back-to-back-to-back singles loaded the bases with nobody out, and a Ryan fielder's choice made it 7-1, Falcons. With runners on the corners and one out, Ryan stole second, enabling the runner at third, Wolak, to come home and stretch the lead to 8-1. Ryan would get another stolen base, advancing to third, and came home on a Gwen Balavage ground out, putting the Falcons up 9-1, and activating the sportsmanship rule, ending the game and giving Lackawanna the victory.
 
Game Two Recap: Brookdale CC 11 – 2 Lackawanna College (6 Innings)



Brookdale played like a team that was letting out its frustrations in the second game of the doubleheader, scoring six runs in the second, building a lead that would never truly be threatened, and eventually coming away with an 11-2 win in six innings at Scranton HS on Sunday afternoon.
 
Lackawanna College (13-12) committed five errors on the afternoon, certainly not helping themselves, and struck out nine times against Brookdale pitcher Gianna Praet, who was strong through six innings, giving up two runs on seven hits. Kira Ryan was the only Falcon with multiple hits, including her first career homerun, while Catarena Sommers was 1-for-3 with a triple, and Meghan Fritz was 1-for-2 with an RBI double. Fritz got the loss, going four innings and giving up seven runs, one earned, on seven hits, while striking out a pair.
 
Fritz retired the side in order to start the game, and the Falcons had McVicar on second with two away in the bottom of the first, but Praet got a pop out to end the threat, and get the Jersey Blues into the second inning, fired up.
 
Brookdale (14-4) got things going with a lead-off walk, followed by a single to put two aboard. An error on a fly ball to the outfield allowed both runners two score, making it 2-0, and putting a runner on third, with nobody out. Another fly ball error in the outfield allowed a third run to come home, and a one-out single to center made it 4-0, Jersey Blues. Another RBI single, followed by a sac fly to left, had Brookdale up 6-0 by the end of the second inning, giving the Falcons a mountain to climb.   
 
In the bottom of the second, Sommers climbed aboard with a one-out triple, giving the Falcons an opportunity. But a swinging strikeout put two away, and a ground out to short ended the Lackawanna threat.
 
Brookdale had the bases loaded with nobody out in the top of the third, but Fritz flashed some leather on a line drive right back at the pitcher, and quickly flipped to first to double off the runner and put two away. A walk loaded the bases again, but Fritz got a fly out to center to strand the runners and keep the game at 6-0.
 
Lackawanna immediately responded in the bottom frame, when Ryan ripped a triple to right field, and Fritz immediately followed with a double to left, scoring Ryan to make it 6-1. Fritz stole third, still with nobody out, but Praet buckled down and got three straight outs, stranding Fritz and closing out the third.
 
Fritz got a pair of ground outs to start the top of the fourth, but a solo shot to left field made it 7-1, Brookdale, and a two-out walk, followed by a single, put two on. Fritz was able to get out of trouble, however, with a fly out to right field, as Sommers avoided colliding with Tess Ruschman to make a snag on a drooping line drive.   
 
The Falcons went quietly in the bottom of the fourth, and bringing the Jersey Blues back to the plate in the top of the fifth. Stephanie Kibbe came in to relieve Fritz, and recovered after giving up a lead-off single, with a line drive double play of her own, snagging a liner that came back to her, and quickly firing to first to double off the runner. A two-out single, followed by an error on the infield, put two on with two away, but Kibbe got a ground out to short to keep it to a 7-1 deficit.
 
In the bottom of the fifth, the Falcons got another run back. With one out, Kira Ryan launched a fly ball to center field, that kept carrying until it dropped well beyond the fence, cutting the deficit to 7-2, and giving Ryan her first career homer as a Falcon. Praet recovered quickly, pitching around a single with a pair of strikeouts to end the inning.
 
Brookdale answered with more runs in the top of the sixth. An error, followed by a walk, and then a single, loaded the bases with nobody out. Kibbe induced a fielder's choice, as Mackayla Quick threw home to Gwen Balavage for the first out. With the bases still loaded, the Jersey Blues got their runs, with a line drive single that scored a pair. A short pop out allowed another run to cross, and then an RBI double brought one more home, making it 11-2, Jersey Blues.
 
With their last licks coming up in the bottom of the sixth, the Falcons got a lead-off single from Emma McNally. McNally advanced to second on a ground out, but a fly out, followed by a swinging strikeout, put the game in the sportsmanship rule, ending things early, and giving Brookdale the split.   
 
The Falcons will next be in action on Wednesday, April 13^th, when they are scheduled to travel to Penn State Hazleton for a doubleheader. The first game is set for a 2:00pm ET start, with game two scheduled to follow at 4:00pm ET. It'll be the first of four straight days of games for the Falcons.