Elizabethtown College faced off against the number two team in the Landmark Conference in the Catholic University Cardinals for a highly contested double header. Etown sat sixth in the conference standings, looking outward into the Landmark playoff positions heading into the matchup. Catholic sat firmly in second place, trailing only to Moravian University after the Greyhounds had swept the Cardinals earlier in the season.
Starting in game one, Catholic got on the board early to start off the contest, hitting an RBI single into center field to take a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning. Etown was able to tie the game up in the second, with junior infielder Sarah Birner knocking in senior outfielder Brooke Huczko with an RBI single. Catholic blew the game wide open, scoring two runs in both the third and fourth innings with a two-RBI home run and a solo home run bringing three of the four runs home. Etown began to crawl back in the fourth inning, with sophomore infielder Jess Dunn hitting an RBI double in the fourth inning, scoring Birner to reduce the deficit to three runs. Catholic continued to add onto their lead, scoring another run in the fifth inning and collecting their third home run of the game to lead 7-2 heading into the bottom of the sixth inning. The Blue Jays weren’t done yet, with first-year infielder Lily Baldwin knocking in two runs with the bases loaded to reduce the deficit to three. Sophomore catcher Emily Bitner added another run in the sixth inning, grounding out but scoring junior outfielder Hannah Long from third as the Blue Jays trailed by two heading into the seventh inning. Despite Birner getting on base with a single, the tying run couldn’t come around to score as the Blue Jays dropped game one 7-5. Birner led the team, batting 2-for-3 in the afternoon with a run, RBI and a walk. Sophomore outfielder Lexi O’Brien added a 1-for-2 performance with a run and a walk. First-year Julia Bergen picked up her third loss of the season after pitching three and a third innings with nine hits, four earned runs and a strikeout.
Junior pitcher Sydney Harper got the nod for game two of the double header to pitch and kept the Cardinals in check as she shut down the side to start off the game, only allowing a single. Long started off the game by reaching first on a throwing error by the shortstop, where she proceeded to round second and reach third base to start off the hitting for game two. Baldwin flew out into center field, however, that was enough as Long was able to tag up at third, scoring the first run of the game. Etown continued their scoring in the bottom of the third inning with this time Baldwin scored off of the sacrifice fly from senior infielder Maddie Reever. Harper continued dealing in the circle, retiring the Cardinals in order for five straight innings, spanning from the top of the second inning until the top of the sixth inning. Harper had some complications in the seventh inning, allowing a leadoff single, however, Etown’s defense held up, securing the 2-0 shutout win against Catholic, boosting them in the Landmark standings. Baldwin led the Blue Jays, batting 2-for-2 with a run and a RBI. Harper pitched seven scoreless innings of three-hit softball, striking out three batters in the process.
Etown ends the series with a record of 16-14 moving to 4-6 in conference. The Blue Jays will take on Lycoming College on May 2 for their final home game series of the season and will potentially play in the Landmark Conference playoffs on May 5.
