READING, Pa. – The Albright Lions softball team (15-15, 9-3 MACC) rallied for a win in game two and completed the doubleheader sweep of the crosstown rival Alvernia Golden Wolves (21-14-1, 9-5 MACC) on Tuesday afternoon at Angelica Park in Reading.
Albright won game one by a score of 7-3 and plated three runs in the top of the seventh en route to a 5-3 victory in game two.
The Lions currently sit in second place in the MAC Commonwealth with four games remaining and are on the brink of the program's first postseason berth since 2007. This also marks the first time since at least 2002 that Albright has swept Alvernia.
Game One
The Lions took the lead for good with a pair of runs in the top of the fifth as three consecutive singles loaded the bases before senior
Stephanie Pomante drew a bases-loaded walk to bring home a run and sophomore
Nora Harrison followed with a sac fly to make it a 5-3 game.
Freshman
Allison Melahn (9-4) gave up three runs on six hits while walking three and fanning one in a complete game effort to earn the win for the visitors. Alvernia's Riley Shields (9-7) surrendered seven runs (five earned) on seven hits in seven innings of work and was dealt the loss.
Albright grabbed an early 2-0 lead as
Brooke Yerger was hit by pitch and
Jessica Rodriguez singled to set the stage for
Camille Sears' two-run triple. JoAnnah Lim's RBI single in the home half of the frame brought the Golden Wolves within a run at 2-1 and Alvernia took a 3-2 lead on Analise Fouracre's two-run single in the bottom of the second. Yerger drew a leadoff walk in the top of the third, advanced to second on an error, took third on a walk and scored on Sears' sac fly to tie things at three apiece.
The Lions were able to add a pair of insurance runs to take a 7-3 lead in the seventh as Harrison plated a run via an RBI single and sophomore
Kaitlyn Chell reached on an error charged to Alvernia 2B Kerstin Koenig which allowed a second run to score.
Rodriguez (2-4, 3 R) and Sears (2-2, 3B, 3 RBI, R) both registered multi-hit games for the Lions.
Game Two
The game was tied at three apiece and Albright had runners at the corners with two outs in the top of the seventh before a wild pitch charged to Alvernia's Ally Decker allowed
Abigail Lord to scamper home from third with the eventual game-winning run. Chell followed with an RBI double into shallow left field to plate pinch-runner
Leila Roberts and give the Lions a 5-3 lead. Earlier in the inning, Rodriguez reached on an infield single, advanced to second on a groundout and scored on Pomante's game-tying RBI double into the left centerfield gap.
The Golden Wolves loaded the bases with one out in the home half of the frame, but Riley Shields popped out to second and Melahn got Alyssa Acker to tap one back to the circle to complete the sweep.
Melahn (10-4) earned the win for the Lions after giving up three runs (two earned) on five hits while walking and fanning a pair in her second consecutive complete game. Decker (10-6) was dealt the loss for Alvernia after allowing five runs on 12 hits to go along with a walk and three strikeouts in seven innings of work.
Alvernia had taken a 3-2 lead in the fifth when Sarah Reinert led off with a single, advanced to second on a fielder's choice, went to third on an error and scored on Shields' RBI groundout.
Sears opened the scoring in the nightcap with an RBI single to score Yerger in the top of the first, but the Golden Wolves added a run in the bottom of the third to tie the game.
The two sides would trade solo runs in the fourth inning as Lord scampered home from third after
Nicole Salerno went down swinging and was thrown out at first.
Chell (3-4, 3 2B, RBI), Harrison (2-2) and Rodriguez (2-4, R) recorded multi-hit games for the Lions, while Lord added a hit and a pair of runs scored.
Albright returns home to host Lebanon Valley in a key MAC Commonwealth doubleheader on Thursday, April 18 at 3 p.m. The team's senior class will be honored in a pregame ceremony.
