STEUBENVILLE, Ohio – The Franciscan University Lady Baron softball team put together a seventh inning rally in game one of Friday's doubleheader to score five runs over Medaille College. However, it was not enough to overcome the deficit they were already facing, and the Lady Barons fell 13-8. In game two, Medaille College finished the sweep with a 7-2 win.
"In the fifth inning (of game one) we had a number of miscues," said head coach Terry Leighty, "and before the inning was over (Medaille) had scored five runs."
Leighty's reference to miscues matches up with the nine game one errors the Lady Barons committed.
"If we had caught the ball, we probably would have won that game," he added.
A scary moment occurred on the final play at the top of the fifth inning, as a Medaille player hit a short pop-up between third base and the pitcher's circle. Franciscan third baseman Mallori Linscomb and pitcher Amelia Gallagher both went after the ball. Although Linscomb made the catch, the two collided, and Gallagher was removed from the game due to an injury sustained. The senior pitcher returned to the dugout by the end of game two.
"The girls were quite upset (following the collision)," Leighty noted. "It shows how strongly they feel about Amelia (Gallagher). There was quite a bit of praying going on in the dugout. We are just happy she is okay."
The collision delayed game one for forty minutes.
The Lady Barons were down 8-3 going into the top of the seventh when Medaille tacked on its five more runs. Franciscan rallied in the bottom of the inning with five runs of its own, but it was not enough.
In game two the Lady Barons struggled hitting the ball, recording only three hits en route to the 7-2 loss.
Katrina Fabian and Mallori Linscomb were the offensive standouts for the Lady Barons in game one, both going as 2-4 with three RBIs. Linscomb had two doubles on the day, and Fabian scored two runs.
The Lady Barons are now 0-28 overall and 0-16 in the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference. The team hosts Chatham University on Thursday, April 26, for a doubleheader beginning 3 p.m.
