MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. – Penn College softball opened its season with a 5-3 record at the season-opening Spring Break Classic in Myrtle Beach, S.C. PCT won with a come-from-behind, 4-2 victory over Immaculata on Monday and defeated Eastern Nazarene, 5-2 on Tuesday. The Wildcats swept Cedar Crest (2-0) and Norwich (3-1) on Thursday and picked up a 20-0 (5 inn.) victory over Cairn on Friday.
Against Immaculata:
PCT rallied to beat Immaculata to open its 2024 season, scoring all four runs in the top of the seventh.
Ivvy Morder plated the winning runs with a 2-run single to score
Grace Lorson and
Madison Shaffer. The Wildcats loaded the bases before Lorson plated the first run in the seventh with an infield single which scored
Madison Herriman. One batter later
Lexi Snyder walked to bring in
Jesse Brumbaugh before Morder's 2-RBI single.
Morder went 2-for-3 as the cleanup hitter and Herriman also had a 2-for-3 game to lead the Wildcat hitting.
Mackenzie Weaver got the win in the circle with a five-hit complete game and striking out nine batters.
Against Eastern Nazarene:
In the final game of Tuesday's slate, the Wildcats plated the game's final five runs for the 5-2 win. Two errors plated the first two runs for the Wildcats as Morder scored from second in the first inning and scored from third in the third inning for a 2-2 game. Maggie Mangene added the go-ahead run later in the third with a sac fly to score Snyder.
In the fourth, Herriman scored on a wild pitch and Faith Anderson scored Morder with a sac fly to right field for the team's fifth run in the sixth inning. Morder and Brumbaugh both went 2-for-3 in the win an Morder scored three runs. Anderson picked up the win in the circle with a complete-game effort, improving to 1-1.
Penn College could not find a way to scratch in a run against Delaware Valley or Centenary despite Lorson having a 3-for-4 day at the plate against the Aggies and going 2-for-4 against the Cyclones.
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Against Cedar Crest:
Penn College opened its Thursday slate with a 2-0 victory over the Falcons. Weaver pitched a two-hit shutout with eight strikeouts to keep Cedar Crest off the board. Both Wildcats runs came in the bottom of the sixth inning as Morder singled to score Mangene from third. Snyder followed Morder with an RBI-single to score Lorson from second.
Against Norwich:
The Wildcats stayed hot as the team scored two runs in the first inning and one in the second for a 3-1 final. Snyder drove in the first run on a ground out that scored Lorson from third and Weaver doubled to drive in Morder. In the second it was Lorson who doubled to score Mangene and give Anderson a three-run advantage to pitch a complete-game and up her record to 2-1. Lorson had another multi-hit game along with Weaver as the duo went 2-for-3 and an RBI.
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Against Cairn:
With all the runs scored in a 20-0 final in five innings, it was what happened in the circle that was the headline as Weaver became the third Wildcat in program history to surpass the 300 career strikeout mark. Weaver accomplished that with her sixth strikeout in the game. The Wildcat junior finished with 10 Ks to claim her third win of the season and went 2-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored.
Morder and
Sofia LaSpina both finished 3-for-4 and combined for nine RBIs and four runs scored while Lorson, Anderson and
Kristen Austra all collected two hits in the victory.
The Wildcats dropped a high-scoring 12-8 final score to Bridgewater State in the tournament finale on Friday afternoon. Snyder LaSpina and Anderson all had two hits. LaSpina and Anderson both added an RBI and scored twice in the game.
Up next: Penn College returns to Williamsport and opens its home schedule at Elm Park on Friday and Saturday with doubleheaders against Rosemont (3 pm.) and Penn State Altoona (1 p.m.), respectively.
