he Elizabethtown College softball team recently fell to the Messiah College Falcons, but the Jays were able to pick up a sweep against the Ursinus College Bears. On April 13, the Falcons won 7-6 and 7-5. The next day, tough defense by Etown kept Ursinus’ offense stifled, and the Jays swept the doubleheader 1-0, 2-0.
On Saturday, Messiah jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead in game one over the Blue Jays after Claressa Mees had a three-run home run in the second inning. The Falcons also picked up single runs in the third and fourth innings, putting them in a commanding 5-0 lead. However, in the fifth inning, the Blue Jays’ bats started warming up.
Sophomore Payton Marunich put Etown on the board with her RBI triple. In the sixth inning, sophomore Kaylee Werner had a three-run home-run, and then two RBIs from seniors Lindsey Cooper and Elly McCarthy in the seventh put the Blue Jays up by one. However, Messiah tied up the game with an RBI from Becky Notte. Unfortunately, an error from Cooper sent a Falcon runner to home plate and gave Messiah the win in game one.
The tough loss in the first game had the Blue Jays eager for a win. McCarthy started Etown’s momentum with a two-run homer to left field. Werner stepped up with her second home run of the day and put the Jays up 3-0. Etown’s statement was quickly silenced when Messiah responded with three runs of their own.
Messiah grabbed a run in the second inning to take a 4-3 lead. However, Etown’s Werner had the hot bat once again, and her RBI single to right field tied the game at four. A run scored off a wild pitch put Messiah up in the fourth, and the back and forth throes continued. In the sixth inning, first-year Keli Krause sent a runner in, and the score was tied heading into the final inning.
Etown could not even get a hit in the seventh, giving the Falcons just the opportunity they needed. Katie Souders hit a two-RBI walk-off home-run to end the game and give Messiah the victory.
Although McCarthy was proud of the team’s effort, the losses still stung. “This is the only team the seniors haven’t beaten in the conference over the four years, so it was really hard to lose that way,” she said. “There was so much hype about the game, so after it was done, it was very exhausting.”
The Blue Jays had a quick response Sunday with their wins over Ursinus. Sophomore pitcher Laura Tomasetti earned the shutout in game one. No Jays registered any RBIs in the win – the sole run came from Werner after a wild pitch. In game two, Krause and sophomore Justyna Pepkowski delivered the shutout, while Werner and sophomore Jessica White grabbed the two RBIs in the win.
