Lackawanna College

5/2/26

WEST WINDSOR TWP., NJ – Lackawanna College softball was crisp and sharp, but the Falcons didn't have enough to hold off Delaware Tech CC, as Del Tech walked off the Falcons, 3-2, in an elimination game in the Region XIX Division II softball tournament on Saturday morning at Mercer County CC in New Jersey.
 
The Falcons (41-15) battled with their postseason nemesis, Del Tech (28-13), through a tight and tense elimination contest, twice taking a one-run lead late, including when the Falcons jumped in front 2-1 on a two-out single from Laniah Tasker (Chambersburg, PA) to right field in the top of the seventh inning.
 
However, Del Tech rallied in the home half. A leadoff single, followed by a sac bunt, placed a runner on second with nobody out. A liner to right fell for a single to put two on, and another bunt ended with everybody safe and the bases loaded, still with one out. With Lackawanna clinging to a one-run advantage, a ground ball to short was enough to tie the game and force an out at second. With runners on the corners and two away, another ground ball to short was too deep for the Falcons to overcome, and Del Tech scored the game-winning run to end Lackawanna College's magical season.
 
It felt like a heavyweight fight through the first four innings, with starter Ayahna Fleisher (Duncannon, PA) pitching a gem for the Falcons, and Del Tech's Abby Marsh matching her into the fifth inning. With two outs in the fifth, Fleisher singled to center and stole second base to give the Falcons life. Kyleah Edwards (Taylor, PA) brought her home with a hard single to center to give the Falcons the 1-0 advantage after 4.5 innings.
 
Fleisher pitched around a one-out single to sit down Del Tech in the home half, and the Falcons were poised to put more on the board with back-to-back two-out singles in the top of the sixth, but a liner of the bat of Mekenzie Dineen (Wilmington, DE) came tantalizingly close to getting past the short stop, but Del Tech made the huge play and stranded the pair.
 
In the bottom half of the sixth, DTCC finally got on track with one out, when a Fleisher pitch was torched to left field and cleared the fence for a solo homer to tie the game. Del Tech got a baserunner with the next batter on a single, but a big strikeout and a fly out to second kept it at 1-1 heading into the seventh.
 
Fleisher and Edwards singled in the seventh with one away, then moved to second and third. A fly out was the second out, but in stepped Tasker, who slapped a single the opposite way into right field to give Lackawanna another slim lead heading into the bottom half, setting up the dramatic finish.
 
Fleisher had three hits and two runs, while Edwards had two hits and an RBI. Tasker also had two hits and an RBI. Lackawanna College had ten hits and left nine on-base, striking out eight times. Fleisher was excellent in defeat, allowing three runs on six hits and striking out six.
 
The loss ends Lackawanna College's season, and it marks the end of Lackawanna College's junior college competition in softball. The Falcons end their final season in the NJCAA with a program-record 41 wins, and will try to take that momentum into next year, when Lackawanna will compete with a four-year school schedule and will play a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) schedule.
 
The win for Delaware Tech guaranteed that Del Tech would make next week's Atlantic District playoffs. In the Region XIX DII championship game, top-seed Mercer defeated Del Tech, 15-7, so Mercer wins the region and will be in the Atlantic A district playoff, while Del Tech will go to the Atlantic B district playoff. A series win in their respective series will mean qualification for the NJCAA Division II Softball World Series, happening May 19^th through the 24^th in Spartanburg, South Carolina.