NORTH MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. — Senior Hailey Sobieski (Wharton, N.J. / Morris Catholic) drove in four runs on the day as the Lycoming College softball team beat Gwynedd Mercy, 7-5, before falling to Lancaster Bible, 5-4 , on Thursday, March 12, at the North Myrtle Beach Park & Sports Complex.
In the morning contest, Gwynedd Mercy (2-5) took the lead in the top of the first on a two-run single from Kassidy Kehoe. However, Lycoming (3-3) immediately struck back when Sobieski blasted a double to the wall in left field to score senior Alex Eckerson (Hopatcong, N.J. / Morris Catholic) in the bottom of the opening frame.
One inning later, Lycoming took control with a five-run second, all of which scored with two outs. Senior Kristen George (Montoursville, Pa. / Montoursville Area) tied the game by roping an RBI triple to right-center, the first three-bagger of her career. After back-to-back walks loaded the bases and forced a pitching change, senior Mallory Rodarmel (Montoursville, Pa. / Loyalsock Township) came through with a two-run single to right to break the deadlock. Sobieski followed with her own two-run hit, this time through the left side, putting the Warriors in front, 6-2.
In the fifth, Lycoming added to the lead when sophomore Ashley Forrest (Red Hill, Pa.) ripped a one-out double to left-center, then came around when junior Abby Becker (Myerstown, Pa. / Tulpehocken) came off the bench and stroked a pinch-hit RBI single to push the advantage to five runs.
Following the bumpy first frame, first-year starter Sage Smeltz (Tower City, Pa. / Williams Valley) settled down, striking out a pair in a 1-2-3 second, which kicked off a four-inning stretch in which she only allowed a pair of two-out singles. When the right-hander did run into some trouble in the sixth, as an error and a single put two on with one out, she induced a 5-3 double play to end the threat. Gwynedd Mercy pulled closer in the seventh on a three-run triple by Hannah Smith, but with the tying run at the plate, first-year right-hander Destiny Novashinski (Perkasie, Pa. / Pennridge) recorded the final three outs in the circle in her collegiate debut.
Sobieski finished with two hits and three RBI, while Rodarmel tallied two hits and two RBI, and Eckerson walked twice and scored both times. Smeltz (2-0) worked the first 6.0 innings, allowing two runs on six hits, with no walks and three strikeouts in an 88-pitch performance.
In the Lancaster Bible (5-4) tilt, the Warriors scored in each of the first two innings, with Rodarmel driving in senior Claire Alexander (South Williamsport, Pa. / South Williamsport Area) with a first-inning sacrifice fly, then first year Kendall Cardone (South Williamsport, Pa. / South Williamsport Area) scampered home on an error in the second for a 2-0 lead.
Lycoming first-year starter Isabelle Engel (Jersey Shore, Pa. / Jersey Shore Area) started with a pair of scoreless innings before the Chargers answered back in the third, with three infield hits plating one run and the equalizer coming home on an error.
The Warriors, though, scored for a third straight inning, re-gaining the lead on Sobieski's fourth RBI of the day, a single up the middle that brought Eckerson home for a 3-2 advantage. Two innings later, Lycoming added insurance when Forrest pulled a sharp groundball just inside the third base line, legging out her first career triple and driving home Rodarmel to restore the two-run cushion.
Engel remained in control through the sixth, throwing three hitless innings after the two-run third to take a 4-2 advantage into the seventh. Lancaster Bible, though, pulled ahead with three runs in the seventh, 5-4, on Amanda Hoover's two-out RBI single. Sobieski led off the bottom of the seventh with a single, but the Warriors could not push a runner past second base.
Sobieski tallied two hits and an RBI, while Alexander notched two hits and scored a run for the Warriors. Ava Stern had two hits and two RBI for the Chargers, while Maddison Atkins scattered nine hits in a complete-game victory.
Lycoming will finish their weeklong trip on the tomorrow morning, Friday, March 12, with a matchup with Penn State-Abington at 9 a.m., and Immaculata at 11 a.m.
