2/28/26

RALEIGH, NC -- Lackawanna College softball finally got its 2026 campaign up-and-running after rain threatened to wipe out their weekend schedule, going 1-2 at the Triangle Collegiate Softball Classic in North Carolina on a marathon Saturday. The Falcons lost 7-0 to Louisburg College and 12-4 in five innings to nationally ranked Division I Gaston College, while beating Wake Tech CC 11-6.
 
The Falcons (1-2) were slated to play two games on Friday and two on Saturday, but rain and fog bagged the Friday games and eventually forced the Falcons to play a rare tripleheader on Saturday.
 
First up was Louisburg College at noon, and the Hurricanes slowly pulled away from the Falcons for the 7-0 shutout win. The Falcons stranded six runners and wasted nine hits, while the Hurricanes scored three runs in the sixth to double what was already a 3-0 lead and then added another in the seventh to ease into the win.
 
Starter Ayahna Fleisher (Duncannon, PA) struggled out of the game, giving up two walks, a double, and hitting two batters as the Falcons fell behind 2-0, but the Falcons caught a runner stealing and then turned a double play to get out of trouble and help settle her down.
 
In the bottom half, the Falcons got back-to-back singles with two outs to get two on, but a strikeout ended the threat. They wasted a leadoff double in the second inning and stranded a runner, while Fleisher pitched around a leadoff homer and two walks to limit the damage to just one run in the top of the third.
 
The Falcons stranded a runner in each of the third and fourth innings, but Fleisher looked to be settling in, dancing out of trouble in the top of the fifth by getting the rare 6-4-2 double play to keep the Canes off the board.
 
She'd come undone in the top of the sixth, however, as a solo homer made it 4-0, then back-to-back two-out doubles made it 5-0. An RBI single pushed the deficit to 6-0 before Fleisher got a strikeout to end the inning. Lackawanna wasted another base runner in the bottom half, and Louisburg added a two-out RBI single in the seventh that pushed their advantage to 7-0 heading into the final half, where Lackawanna would waste one last base runner.
 
Fleisher gave up seven runs on eleven hits and walked six, while striking out seven, in her first career start, while Gracie Sokol (Belle Vernon, PA) was 3-for-3 on the day. Kyleah Edwards (Taylor, PA) went 2-for-2 in her first career start.
 
In game two, Lackawanna overcame a 4-1 deficit to score eight runs in the top of the third and cruise to an 11-6 win against Wake Tech CC, overcoming four errors to pick up the first win of the 2026 season.
 
Fleisher led the game off with a single, stole second, stole third, and then scored on a ground ball out to give the Falcons their first run and first lead of 2026, but Wake Tech quickly answered with four runs in the first two innings.
 
Trailing 4-1 in the top of the third, the Lackawanna offense finally clicked into gear. A walk and back-to-back singles loaded the bases with nobody out. Laniah Tasker (Chambersburg, PA) singled just over the second baseman to drive in a run, and a bases loaded hit batter forced in another run. Mackenzie Adolfson (Throop, PA) singled to tie the game, then Riley Knott (Clarks Summit, PA) singled in the go-ahead run to make it 5-4, Falcons, still with one out. A sac fly made it 6-4, then, after a hit batter, Fleisher ripped a bases-clearing triple to left field to make it 9-4, Falcons, heading into the bottom half of the third.
 
Mia Scalese (Moscow, PA) retired the side in order in the third, then Adolfson added an RBI single in the fourth to extend the Falcons to 10-4.
 
A pair of errors helped Wake Tech score a pair of runs in the bottom of the fourth, but Alexis Shotwell (Lehman, PA) singled in a runner in the top of the seventh to round out the scoring and give Scalese plenty of cushion to get around two walks in the bottom frame and pick up the win.
 
Scalese struck out eight batters and gave up six runs, just one earned, on seven hits for the win. Fleisher was 3-for-5 with a run scored and three RBIs, while Tasker went 3-for-4 with two runs and an RBI. Knott had two hits and an RBI, while Adolfson added two RBIs.
 
Game three was a tough one, as the Falcons took on Division I #10 Gaston College. The Rhinos scored nine runs in the first inning alone, but the Falcons managed to get back within 9-4 after two innings of play. Eventually, Gaston broke through again, scoring three in the fifth to end things early at 12-4 after five innings.
 
After Lackawanna was retired in order to start the game, Gaston scored nine runs in the bottom half without really needing to do much beyond take ball four. Starter Mekenzie Revere (Ansonia, CT) struggled to find the zone, as the Rhinos drew a walk, hit an infield single, and then had another walk to load the bases with nobody out. Three-straight bases loaded walks, followed by a hit batter, made it 4-0, Gaston, still with nobody out. Another walk forced in a run to make it 5-0, and Revere was relieved by Fleisher. Fleisher earned a punch out, then got a sac fly to trade a sixth run for a second out. A passed ball let another run score, then an error on a ball up the middle let two runs cross to make it 9-0, Rhinos, before Fleisher got a strikeout to mercifully end the inning.
 
In the top of the second, the Falcons had an answer, using a walk from Sokol and a double from Adolfson to put two on in scoring position and nobody out. A strikeout was the first out, but an error at first let the Falcons load the bases. Edwards hit a single to center that scored one run, but a laser from center to home plate nailed Adolfson and put two away. Fleisher singled to center to score another run, then Scalese singled in a pair of runs to make it 9-4 and give Lackawanna a bit of life heading into the bottom of the second.
 
Fleisher retired the side in order, and it seemed like Lackawanna had some momentum, but a Gaston pitching change proved to be just what the Rhinos needed, as the relief pitcher struck out the first six batters she faced and retired the Falcons in order in all three innings she threw in. Meanwhile, Fleisher was doing her best to match, retiring the Rhinos in order in the third and then pitching around a two-out double and walk to keep the Falcons in the game.
 
Eventually, though, Fleisher began to tire out, and Gaston pounced in the fifth. A leadoff double and a walk put two on, and a double to center made it 10-4, Rhinos. The Falcons made a change at pitcher and brought in Abigail Yenalevitch (Kingston, PA), who walked a batter to load the bases, but an infield fly got the Falcons their first out. A bases loaded walk made it 11-4, and the Rhinos won on a ground out fielder's choice, where the Falcons took the out at third but failed to throw home to prevent the game-sealing run from scoring.
 
Revere gave up eight runs and walked six batters for the loss, while Fleisher pitched four innings of relief, striking out six. Lackawanna walked eleven batters in all. Scalese had two RBIs, while Fleisher and Edwards each added RBIs of their own. Sokol, Edwards, Knott, and Mekenzie Dineen (Wilmington, DE) each scored runs.
 
Lackawanna College will look to get back to action on Tuesday, March 3^rd, when the Falcons are scheduled to be in action down at Salem CC in their Region XIX DII opener. First pitch of the region doubleheader is set for 1:00pm ET in Carneys Point, NJ.