ERIE, Pa. --- The Golden Eagle softball team lost a pair of nailbiters on the road on Thursday afternoon, continuing their whirlwind final two weeks at McConnell Family Stadium in Erie. Clarion dropped the first game of the doubleheader by a 2-1 score and the second 11-8, with Gannon taking the lead late in both games.
Game 1: Gannon 2, Clarion 1
RECAP: It was a pitchers' duel in the opening game of the day, with starting pitchers Emma Hipps and Maggie Lenda putting up 11 consecutive zeroes from the start of the game until the bottom of the sixth inning. Hipps was the more dominant of the two for the most part, whiffing nine Golden Knights and allowing just three total hits. Lenda, meanwhile, allowed nine hits and struck out just six.
However, the Golden Knights got their hits at the most opportune time, driving in a pair of runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to take a 2-0 lead. Hipps walked Alaina Whipkey with one out in the inning, and Jules Ryan bunted her over to second base with a sacrifice bunt. Natalia Mallozzi followed up with her second hit of the game, an RBI double to the gap in left center to put her team ahead. Gabi Vasi drove her home with a two-out single to center field, giving Gannon a 2-0 lead.
Clarion put on a strong push in the top of the seventh inning, nearly tying the game. Billie Aguglia roped a ground-rule double down the left field line with one out, and pinch runner Lauren Hartman scored on Annika Smith's opposite-field single down the right field line. Smith moved up to second base on a wild pitch by Lenda, but the latter retired Alexis Valencia and Emily Buchleitner to close out the win.
Rachel Helsley continued her tear at the plate, going 3-for-3 at the dish, while Valencia went 2-for-4.
Game 2: Gannon 11, Clarion 8
RECAP: Conversely, the teams traded big innings in the second game of the day, with the Golden Eagles going up with a significant lead but unable to hold off the surging Golden Knights. Clarion led by scores of 6-2 and 7-4 in the game, but Gannon exploded for six runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to take an 11-7 advantage.
Even still, the Golden Eagles had more fight in them, scoring one run in the top of the seventh and putting the go-ahead run at the plate with one out. With her team trailing by four runs, Valencia led off the inning with an infield single, but the sophomore was thrown out at home on Emily Buchleitner's double to deep left field. Helsley responded with a double of her own to score Buchleitner and make it 11-8, and Tori Martrano and Kathryn O'Horo drew walks to load the bases with one out. Pitcher Gabi Vasi got Haylie Rimmey to pop out and then struck out Desi Allen for the win.
Early on it was Clarion who benefited from a big inning. The Golden Eagles scored four runs in the top of the second inning, starting with a leadoff double by Martrano. O'Horo sacrificed pinch runner Jordy Best over with a bunt, and a wild pitch brought her home to put the Golden Eagles on the scoreboard. Smith broke the game open with a two-run, two-out double to deep center field, and Valencia tacked on an RBI single for good measure to make it 4-1.
Clarion scored twice more in the top of the third inning, when O'Horo crushed her team-leading fourth home run of the season over the fence in left-center field to score Helsley and herself. That put the Golden Eagles ahead 6-2, but all the while the Golden Knights were chipping away at the lead a run at a time. Buchleitner scored on a groundout by Helsley after hitting a leadoff triple in the top of the fifth inning, making it 7-4, but Gannon came back with seven unanswered to take the lead for good.
O'Horo and Helsley led the Golden Eagles with two RBIs apiece, while four Clarion players finished with two more more hits.
