NEW WILMINGTON, Pa. (March 28) – The Waynesburg University softball team opened Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) competition with a road doubleheader at Westminster on Wednesday. The Yellow Jackets gave the traditional conference powerhouse Titans a good challenge, but came up short of victory on the day.
Westminster (11-5, 2-0) used a four-run fourth inning to power a 5-1 win in game one. Waynesburg (7-9, 0-2) grabbed a 2-0 advantage in game two, but couldn't hold it as the Titans came back to claim a 4-2 victory.
After neither team was able to push a run across over the first three innings of the afternoon, the Jackets took a 1-0 lead in the fourth inning of game one when sophomore catcher
Rachel Skon singled in freshman
Hannah Batovsky who was running for freshman designated player Hannah
Tara Staley. Unfortunately, the Titans erased the lead in the bottom half of the frame with a grand slam that made the score 4-1. Westminster tacked on the game's final run in its half of the sixth.
Junior pitcher
Courtney Messenger started and worked all six innings in the circle. She gave up five earned run on seven hits and two walks. She logged a pair of strikeouts in the opener.
Skon paced the Jacket bats in game one by going two-for-two at the dish. Five other Waynesburg players logged a hit each in the loss.
Game two got off to a similar start with neither team able to light the scoreboard over the first three innings. Sophomore
Cheyenne Wasko and freshman Christine Baker logged RBI singles in the top of the fourth to give Waynesburg a 2-0 edge.
The Titans responded with a two-spot in their half of the fourth, before a two-run homer provided the game-deciding scores in the fifth. The Jackets brought the game-tying run to the plate in the top of the seventh with two outs, but were unable to extend the contest.
Messenger got the start in game two and took the loss after yielding three runs, two of which were earned, on seven hits and a walk. Freshman
Miranda Bowers gave up a run on a hit and two walks over two innings of relief work.
Four different Yellow Jackets logged one hit each in the late contest.
Waynesburg is back in action on Wednesday, April 4, when it travels to Grove City for a PAC doubleheader. First pitch is scheduled for 3:30 p.m.
