The Pomona-Pitzer softball team split a pair of 5-4 decisions against Claremont-Mudd-Scripps on Saturday to move to 3-7 overall and 1-5 in SCIAC.
The Sagehens got off to a good start in the first inning of the opening game when Lauren Boden PO ’14, Leah Bleichner PO ’15, and Ashley Morello PZ ’15 each reached base and scored off of RBI singles from Emily Glass PO ’15 and Meagan Tokunaga PO ’15. The Athenas picked up two runs in the bottom of the second after an error, but P-P responded with a double by Glass that scored Bleichner and gave the Sagehens a 4-2 lead.
However, that was all the Sagehens would manage in the first game. CMS tied the game in the fourth with a two-RBI double by Shelby Long and scored the deciding run on a squeeze play in the fifth by Marie Bradvica. Fiona Riley PO ’15 took the loss with four earned runs in six innings.
The Sagehens again struck first in the second game of the doubleheader with Ariana Yee’s PO ‘16 two-run single in the second inning. CMS strung together a bunch of hits and picked up four runs in the bottom of the third, but a popup left two Athenas on base and kept the Sagehens within range. The Sagehens bounced back quickly, as Tokunaga and Yee sandwiched two-out singles around Stephanie Boden’s PO ’14 walk, and Morello tied the game with a two-run single.
The winning run came in the top of the sixth when Shannon Julius PZ ’14, pinch running for Paige Oliver PO ’16, moved to second on a wild pitch, took third on a Tokunaga sacrifice, and then scored on Boden’s fielder’s choice groundout. Riley allowed only two runners to reach base over the final four innings en route to picking up her third win of the year.
“Our defense played solidly, and everyone contributed offensively,” Riley said.
The Sagehens were still without Second-Team All-SCIAC selection Jessica Liu PO ‘15, who is out with an injury, but were helped by Bleichner’s return to the outfield. They will be back in action this weekend with a doubleheader at Chapman University, which is currently first in the SCIAC with a 7-1 record. A split or sweep this weekend would be huge for the Sagehens as they try to improve upon last year’s third-place conference finish.
“It was really key to get our first win against a good team,” Glass said. “They’re our biggest rival, so this gave us confidence we need to do well this weekend against Chapman. They’re a really good team, and we’ll need to play well.”