ALLIANCE, Ohio – Mount Union's softball team split a non-conference doubleheader with Carnegie Mellon, losing game one 7-4 and winning game two 12-4 in five innings on Sunday afternoon.
The Tartans (6-6) struck first in game one when Kira Monji and Koko Sagae both hit solo home runs and then Madison Beall hit an RBI to take a 3-0 lead in the top of the first inning. Carnegie Mellon would extend their lead in the fifth inning when Jasmine Chao hit a two RBI double to make the lead five runs. The Tartans would another run in the top half of the sixth off an RBI from Beall to make the lead 6-0.
The Purple Raiders (13-2) would answer with a run of their own in the bottom half of the sixth to cut the lead down to five runs. Carnegie Mellon would push the lead back out to six runs in the seventh off a sacrifice fly from Faith Lawrence.
Mount Union would answer with three runs in the bottom half of the inning, the first two came off a two run homerun from sophomore
Faith Kiko (North Canton / Hoover) and then sophomore
Sydney Mercer (Salem / West Branch) hit an RBI single that scored sophomore
Lydia Brunner (Minerva) to cut the lead down to three runs but that's as close as they would get as the Tartans would go on to take game one 7-4.
Sophomore
Kendyll Cahill (Grove Port / Grove Port Madison) got the start in the circle for Mount Union and gave up five runs, four earned on nine hits and struck out seven in 4.1 innings of action. Freshman
Haleigh McCalla (Youngstown / Springfield Local) came in to pitch the final 2.2 innings in relief and gave up two runs, one earned and three hits, while striking out one.
Carnegie Mellon would strike first again in game two, scoring off solo home runs from Kiera Boucher and Maya Goodwin to take a 2-0 lead. The Raiders would answer in the bottom of the second inning when sophomore
Kaitlyn Culver (Girard) scored a passed ball to cut the led to a run. Beall would hit an RBI single in the third inning to stretch the Tartan lead back to two runs.
Mount Union would tie the game in the bottom of the third with RBIs coming from junior
Sami Swartz (Columbus / Grandview Heights) and Kiko to tie the game at three runs apiece. Carnegie Mellon would reclaim the lead in the fourth inning when Lawrence hit an RBI single to take a 4-3 lead. The Raiders would answer with a massive nine run inning in the bottom half of the fourth with RBIs coming from sophomore
Faith Reicosky (North Canton / Hoover), junior
Adri George (Eastlake / North), sophomore
Emily Denney (Poland/ Poland Seminary), Kiko, Culver and Brunner to take a 12-4 lead. The Tartans wouldn't have an answer in the fifth inning as Mount Union would go on to take game two 12-4 in five innings.
Sophomore
Chloe Bird (Norton) got the start in the circle for Mount Union and gave up four runs on eight hits and struck out four in three innings of action. Sophomore
Brooklyn Schlabach (Apple Creek / Waynedale) would come in to pitch the final two innings in relief and gave up zero runs on zero hits and struck out one.
The Raiders are back in action again tomorrow as they host Thiel in a doubleheader with games beginning at 3 and 5 p.m. at the 23
rd Street Softball Field in Alliance.
