Garnet Bats Help Capture Crucial Split With Muhlenberg
ALLENTOWN, Pa. - Fueled by a clutch three-hit, three RBI performance from junior Krista Scheirer, the Swarthmore College softball team (10-16, 3-5) built a commanding nine-run lead and held on late to defeat defending Centennial Conference champion Muhlenberg 9-7 in the second game of a doubleheader on Tuesday afternoon. The Mules took the first game 2-0.
Scheirer finished with the first game three hits and three RBI - all of which came during the Garnet's eight-run outburst through the third and fourth innings - while sophomore Liz Cushing added two hits, two RBI and a stolen base to lead the Swat attack. Freshman Danielle Seltzer added a double in the second game while leading Swat with two of its four hits in the opening game.
Senior Kathryn Riley (4-8) took the victory in the second game after working five innings in relief of starter Isabel Sanchez with five earned runs and four strikeouts. Despite taking the loss in the first game, Riley only allowed four hits and one earned with six strikeouts
Cushing added two RBIs in the Garnet 9-7 Game 2 victory.
After dropping the first game, the Garnet opened the second game - a crucial one for the team's Centennial playoff hopes - in a big way, scoring nine runs through the first four innings of play to build a 9-0 lead.
A two-out RBI single from Cushing gave Swat a 1-0 lead in the first inning before the flood gates opened in the third. The Garnet scored four runs in both the third and fourth innings to build a 9-0 lead. Scheirer was at the heart of both big innings, as she singled twice to bring home three runs. Seltzer and Cushing also added RBI hits in the fourth, while the remaining Swat runs came home thanks to two Muhlenberg errors.
But the 9-0 cushion would not last for long. The Mules chipped away with two runs in the bottom of the fourth to make it a 9-2 game before making a major push in the bottom of the sixth. Thanks in part to an RBI bases-loaded triple from the Mules' Alyssa Epstein, the Berg tagged Riley for five runs and hits, making it a 9-7 game with a runner on second base, one out and the heart of the order coming to the plate.
With the game on the line, Riley buckled down and picked up two huge outs for Swat. She forced Muhlenberg' Ashley Brewer to ground out back to the pitcher and then struck out cleanup hitter Jess Kasza to end the threat. In the seventh, Riley allowed a leadoff single, but then return the next three Mule hitters in order to help the Garnet hang on for the 9-7 win.
In the first game, Muhlenberg scored two runs in the fourth inning - scored on an error and a passed ball - to earn the 2-0 win.
Swarthmore returns to action on Thursday with a home doubleheader with Arcadia. Play begins at 3:00 p.m.