3/8/26
 
THROOP, Pa. – A pair of big hits in game one helped Lackawanna College softball clinch a doubleheader split on Sunday afternoon against NJCAA Division I Monroe University at Mid Valley HS in non-region action. Lackawanna won game one, 5-4, and fell in game two, 12-5.
 
The Falcons (4-3) got big hits from Gracie Sokol (Belle Vernon, PA) and Mia Scalese (Moscow, PA) in the fifth and sixth innings of game one to break open a 3-3 tie and give the Falcons a two-run lead heading into the seventh, and Ayahna Fleisher (Duncannon, PA) made that stand up, getting out of a bases-loaded jam with nobody out on a strikeout, a hit batter, an infield fly, and a strikeout to clinch the 5-4 win.
 
Fleisher struck out eleven batters and scattered eleven hits in the complete game victory, giving up four runs. She also scored two runs and hit a double, while Scalese went 2-for-3 with an RBI, Mekenzie Dineen (Wilmington, DE) doubled in a run, and Haleigh Mazol (Stroudsburg, PA) doubled and scored a run for the Falcons.
 
After an error let the Falcons score in the first, Lackawanna led 1-0 heading into the fourth inning before Monroe (8-6) finally responded. A two-out double put a runner in scoring position, and a single to left let that runner score to tie the game. Another single put two on, but a soft fly out to short ended the potential rally early.
 
In the bottom frame, Mazol led things off with a double, then eventually scored on a double steal to make it 2-1, Falcons. Dineen smacked an RBI double to left-center field that made it 3-1 after four innings.
 
Monroe responded in the top of the fifth, using back-to-back singles to put two on with one out. Fleisher struck out a pinch hitter to put two away, but a hit batter loaded the bases, and a double to deep right-center hopped over the fence, forcing the potential go-ahead run to hold up at third and limiting it to a 3-3 game. Fleisher forced another soft liner to short to strand a pair of runners and send it to the bottom half.
 
In the bottom of the fifth, Scalese and Laniah Tasker (Chambersburg, PA) led the inning off with back-to-back singles, and Sokol followed with a sharp single up the middle to score Scalese and make it 4-3, Falcons. Lackawanna couldn't take advantage of the two runners on and nobody out situation, however, as the Falcons were retired in order from there.
 
Monroe couldn't get a run home in the sixth, getting a runner to third but failing to score when the Falcons went home for a play at the plate on a grounder. A two-out double from Fleisher gave the Falcons a baserunner in the bottom of the sixth, and Scalese doubled her home with a ball off the fence in right field that made it 5-3, Falcons, heading into the top of the seventh.
 
A single followed by an error, and then a bunt single, all combined to load the bases with nobody out. Fleisher struck out the next batter for the first out, then hit a batter to force a run in and cut the lead to just one-run. An infield pop-up triggered the infield fly rule, putting two down. A dropped third strike on the final batter almost spelled the end for the Falcons, but Lackawanna tagged the runner at the plate to secure the game one win.
 
Game two went from looking like another Lackawanna victory to a complete unraveling by the Falcons in the top of the seventh, as Lackawanna committed three errors, gave up six hits, and let nine runs score to completely flip the game on its head and give Monroe the 12-5 victory.
 
Lackawanna trailed 3-2 heading into the bottom of the sixth, but back-to-back errors on the infield of Monroe let the Falcons score three runs and take a 5-3 lead heading into the top half of the seventh.
 
Starter Mekenzie Revere (Ansonia, CT) had pitched admirably to that point, and came back out to try to give the Falcons the win. Monroe wasted absolutely no time, using a leadoff single and an RBI triple to get within 5-4. Then, a first-pitch swing launched the ball over the fence to deep center to give Monroe a 6-5 lead. The nightmare was only just beginning, as an error, an infield single, and then another error let another run score. A line out to short was the first out, and a grounder traded a run for an out to make it 8-5, Monroe, with two away. A lined shot to left got past the outfield and skittered towards the fence, turning into an inside-the-park home run that made it 10-5, Mustangs. After a single and a stolen base, a strikeout looked like it ended the inning, but a passed ball kept the Mustangs alive. With runners on second and third, an error on the infield let two runs score to make it 12-5, Mustangs. Lackawanna brought in Scalese to get the final out, inducing a pop up to finally end the terrible seventh for Lackawanna.
 
The Falcons had a little rally going in the bottom frame, using two walks and a single with two outs to load the bases, but a grounder to short ended the game and gave Monroe the win and the doubleheader split.
 
Revere was handed the loss, going 6.2 innings and striking out eleven batters, but giving up 12 runs, six earned, on 14 hits. Scalese hit a solo homer and was 2-for-4, while Riley Knott (Clarks Summit, PA) went 2-for-3 with a run scored, and Kyleah Edwards (Taylor, PA) had two hits and a run scored.
 
Lackawanna College gets back to work with a doubleheader at CCBC Catonsville on Tuesday, March 10^th, starting at 2:00pm ET in Catonsville, MD.