NEW CONCORD, Ohio – Mount Union's softball team dropped both games of a double header in Ohio Athletic Conference play against Muskingum on Thursday evening, losing game one 5-4 and losing game two 10-9.
The Fighting Muskies (18-6, 3-2 OAC) struck first in game one when Claire Warschauer scored on a wild pitch to take a 1-0 lead. Muskingum would add to their lead in the bottom half of the fourth inning off an RBI single by Sarah Piteo to take a 2-0 lead.
The Purple Raiders (11-15, 1-5 OAC) would answer with three runs in the top of the fifth, with the first run coming off an RBI single from junior
Alexis Temple (Mentor). Junior
Grace Heath (Beloit / West Branch) hit an RBI triple to score the second run of the inning and break the school record for single season and career triples. Heath would then score when senior
Payton Guspyt (Port Washington / Indian Valley) reached first on an error to take a 3-2 lead and giving Mount Union their first lead of the game.
The Muskies would reclaim the lead in the bottom half of the fifth, when a single by Katie Osburn scored two runs to give Muskingum a 4-3 lead. The Raiders would tie the game in the top of the seventh inning when freshman
Adri George (Eastlake / North) hit a sacrifice fly to right field that scored Guspyt. Muskingum would score the winning run in the bottom of the seventh off an RBI single from Haley Hawk and take game one 5-4.
Senior
Peyton Morrison (Canton / GlenOak) pitched a complete game for Mount Union, giving up five runs, three earned on six hits and striking out four in the loss.
After a scoreless first two innings, the Raiders got on the board first in game two scoring five runs in the top half of the third inning. Temple scored off a throwing error by the Muskingum catcher, then Guspyt hit an RBI single to right field and scored Heath. Senior
Alyssa Rose (Madison) hit a two-run homer to score the third and fourth runs of the inning, the final run came after freshman
Amanda Bish (Mercer, Pa.) reached first on an error by the Muskingum second baseman and senior
Hanna Ingram (Stow) scored.
The Muskies scored a run of their own in the bottom of the third when Taylor Gallentine grounded out to second and scored Christianna Boggs. Mount Union would add to their lead in the fourth inning when Guspyt hit an RBI double that scored senior
Savannah Miner (Louisville) to extend the lead to 6-1. Muskingum would cut into the lead with another run in the bottom of the fourth when Boggs hit an RBI single up the middle.
The Raiders added another run in the top half of the fifth inning coming off a sacrifice fly from George that scored Ingram to increase their lead to 7-2. The Muskies would trim the lead down to two in the fifth scoring three runs coming off RBIs by Osburn and Piteo. Mount Union would get the lead back up to three in the sixth inning, when Rose hit an RBI triple that scored Guspyt.
Muskingum would score three more runs in the bottom of the sixth to tie the game at eight. The Raiders would reclaim the lead in the top half of the seventh inning when Miner reached first on a throwing error by the Muskingum third baseman and sophomore
Michaela Folks (Wooster) scored. Kalie Eshelman hit a solo homerun for the Muskies to tie the game at nine in the bottom of the seventh, then Boggs scored on an error to give Muskingum a 10-9 victory.
Rose got the start in the circle for the Raiders, she gave up five runs, four earned on nine hits and struck out two in 4.1 innings. Senior
Ashley Cascio (Elyria / Elyria Catholic) came in and pitched one inning of relief giving up three runs on two hits, junior
Megan Zody (Westerville / Westerville Central) pitched 0.2 innings of relief giving up two runs, one earned on three hits and struck out one.
The Raiders return home next taking on Otterbein in OAC play on Saturday, April 9, with game one of the double header starting at 1 p.m. at the 23
rd Street Softball Field in Alliance.
