PITTSBURGH – A late comeback fell just short in game one as West Virginia Wesleyan swept Point Park on Friday afternoon at Fairhaven Park.
GAME 1: WEST VIRGINIA WESLEYAN 8 – 7 POINT PARK
W: Greene (6-8) |
L: Hubble (0-1) |
SV: O'Brien (2)
The Bobcats struck early as Jaelyn Riley led off with a single up the middle and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Lynzee Hague. Riley attempted to advance to third, and although the tag was applied, her slide jarred the ball loose from the glove of
Gia LaBrie', sending it out of play and allowing Riley to score.
Madison Austra extended the lead in the second inning with a solo home run to left-center on a 2-1 count, giving Wesleyan a 2-0 advantage.
Point Park responded in the bottom of the fourth.
Ava Hubble led off with a double down the left field line and scored on a
Jana Hess single to right. Hess later came around to score on a
Kaylee Fabiano sacrifice fly, tying the game at 2-2.
The tie was short-lived, as the Bobcats regained control in the fifth. With two outs, Gracey Arnold was hit by a pitch and moved to second on a Reagan Winn single. Josi Fix walked to load the bases before Austra drew an RBI walk to score Arnold. Ella Fournier followed with another bases-loaded walk to bring in Winn, and Emma Putman capped the rally with an RBI single to left, giving Wesleyan a 5-2 lead.
Emma Henry provided a spark for the Pioneers in the bottom of the fifth, launching her first career home run—a no-doubter to left-center—to cut the deficit to 5-3.
Wesleyan added insurance in the sixth. Riley walked, stole second and third, and scored on a sacrifice bunt by Arnold. Later in the inning, Fournier delivered a two-run single up the middle to extend the lead to 8-3.
Point Park continued to battle back. LaBrie led off the sixth with a single and eventually scored on a Fabiano RBI single, trimming the deficit to 8-4.
In the seventh, the Pioneers mounted a final rally.
Cam Mann and
Shania Cope opened the inning with back-to-back singles. Henry drove in Mann with an RBI single, and
Ava Hubble followed with another RBI single to make it 8-6. LaBrie then added an infield RBI single after a comebacker struck the pitcher, bringing the Pioneers within one. With no outs and the tying run on base, Mackenzie O'Brien entered in relief and retired the next three batters to secure the save.
Point Park totaled 15 hits in the game, with Hubble leading the way at 3-for-4. Henry and LaBrie each went 2-for-4, while Hess finished 2-for-3. All nine starters recorded at least one hit.
Morgan Greene earned the win, pitching six-plus innings while allowing seven runs (six earned) on 14 hits with three strikeouts. O'Brien picked up the save with a scoreless seventh. Henry started for Point Park, going five innings and allowing five runs (four earned) with two strikeouts. Hubble took the loss in relief, allowing three runs over two innings.
GAME 2: WEST VIRGINIA WESLEYAN 7 – 1 POINT PARK
W: O'Brien (1-4) |
L: Johnson (4-8)
After two scoreless innings, Point Park struck first in the third. Fabiano singled to lead off the inning and advanced to second on a passed ball. She later scored on a Mann double to center, giving the Pioneers a 1-0 lead.
The Bobcats answered in the fourth, as Josi Fix walked, stole second, and scored on an RBI single by Ella Fournier to tie the game.
Wesleyan took control in the fifth. Kali Vance delivered a pinch-hit single before Riley followed with a bunt single. After a sacrifice bunt moved both runners into scoring position, Gracey Arnold drove in a run with a single. A throwing error allowed another run to score, giving the Bobcats a 3-1 lead.
The lead grew in the sixth with three unearned runs. The Bobcats capitalized on defensive miscues and timely hitting, extending their advantage to 6-1.
Wesleyan added an insurance run in the seventh, to give them a comfortable lead as Austra scored on a Fournier double to right.
Mann led the Pioneers offensively in game two, going 2-for-3 with the team's lone RBI.
Both starting pitchers went the distance. O'Brien earned the win, allowing just one run while striking out four.
Julia Johnson also struck out four but allowed seven runs (three earned) in the loss.
With the sweep, Wesleyan improves to 10-20 overall and 3-9 in MEC play, while Point Park falls to 7-18 and 2-8 in the conference.
UP NEXT
Point Park will host Davis & Elkins on Saturday, April 4, with first pitch scheduled for 1:00 p.m. at Fairhaven Park. Stay tuned to the team's website and social media for any schedule updates.
