3/20/26
 
LITTLE RIVER, SC – Errors and self-inflicted wounds kept Lackawanna College softball from sweeping a pair of games on Friday afternoon in their final day of action at the Fastpitch Dreams Classic, so the Falcons instead had to settle for a split of the spoils in their two games, defeating Oakton CC, 14-2, in game one, and falling 8-4 to Metropolitan CC in game two.
 
The Falcons (13-6) cruised through their first game against the Owls, exploding for all 14 runs after the third inning. Lackawanna led Oakton by a 5-2 margin heading into the sixth, but scored two runs in the top half, thanks to an RBI triple from Riley Knott (Clarks Summit, PA), who then scored on a wild pitch to make it 7-2, Falcons.
 
In the top of the seventh, the Falcons plated seven runs on just three hits and an error to blow the game wide open. A leadoff error eventually led to an RBI fielder's choice from Knott that made it 8-2. With one out and the bases loaded, a passed ball let a run score to make it 9-2. Another walk, followed by an RBI ground out, pushed the lead to 10-2. After a hit batter loaded the bases again, Tori May (New Castle, PA) yanked a single to left that scored a pair of runners. Alexis Shotwell (Lehman, PA) lofted a liner that just snuck inside the left field line, hitting the turf and rolling away. Two runs scored and Shotwell stood at third with a two-run triple, making it 14-2.
 
The Falcons finished the game with six extra-base hits, including three triples. Arianna Gaylord (Wyoming, PA) was 3-for-6 with three runs scored, while Knott finished 2-for-3 with three RBIs and two runs. Kyleah Edwards (Taylor, PA) went 2-for-4 with three runs and an RBI, along with a runner caught stealing from behind the plate. Pitcher Abigail Yenalevitch (Kingston, PA) earned the win, giving up two runs, neither earned, on three hits in five innings.
 
Those two unearned runs in game one would be just the beginning for the Falcons on the day, as Lackawanna gave up eight runs, just four earned, in the 8-4 loss to Metropolitan CC in the second game of the doubleheader.
 
Metro (13-8) led 3-0 after 3.5 innings, using a two-run double to right in the fourth inning to deliver the blow, but Lackawanna College bounced back in the bottom half, thanks to some errors form the Wolves.
 
Two singles sandwiched an error from the Wolves, and Lackawanna had the bases loaded with nobody out. Madison Pirolli (Southampton, PA) singled to center to score the first run for Lackawanna, Haleigh Mazol (Stroudsburg, PA) followed with an RBI single of her own to make it 3-2, and the Falcons had some momentum. A strikeout put one away, but an error on a ground ball between third and short allowed two runs to score and pushed the Falcons in front at 4-3. The Falcons felt the momentum, but a nifty 6-4-3 double play cut them down early.
 
Mekenzie Revere (Ansonia, CT) kept out of trouble until the top of the sixth, when errors and mistakes finally reared their ugly heads for the Falcons. A leadoff single was followed by an error on the infield, putting two on with nobody out. Another error, this time on a bouncer back to the pitcher, let a run score and tied the game at 4-4. A walk loaded the bases, still with nobody out, and Revere traded an out for a run on a grounder that let the Wolves take the 5-4 lead. Revere got a strikeout to get to two outs, but a single pushed back up the middle scored a pair, making it 7-4, Metropolitan, heading into the bottom frame.
 
Mazol reached on a hit by pitch, and Mekenzie Dineen (Wilmington, DE) singled to left to put two on with one away, but another 6-4-3 double play cut the Falcons down before they could get on a roll.
 
In the seventh, Metropolitan added an insurance run, loading the bases with two outs and using a hit batter to force a run home, making it 8-4. Lackawanna once again had two on, this time with one out, but a fielder's choice traded an out for runners on the corners, and a strikeout ended the inning and the day for Lackawanna.
 
Lackawanna College had eleven combined hits on the day, getting two apiece from Knott and Laniah Tasker (Chambersburg, PA), as well as two base-knocks from Mackenzie Adolfson (Throop, PA). Revere took the loss, falling to 3-3 on the year, giving up eight runs, four earned, on 13 hits and five walks in seven innings.
 
Lackawanna College finishes its spring break trip with a 7-3 record, and now sits at 13-6 overall. The Falcons will make their way back north and get back to action in Scranton this coming Sunday, March 22^nd, with a doubleheader against SUNY Corning CC. First pitch is set for 12:00pm ET at Scranton HS softball field.