WINTER HAVEN, Fla. – The Niagara softball team lost two games to open play at the Rebel Spring Games on Monday.
Niagara 0, Lehigh 1The Niagara softball team was edged in a pitching duel to the Lehigh Mountain Hawks, 1-0, on Monday to open play in the Rebel Spring Games.
Sydney Smyers went the distance allowing one run on three hits and struck out two. Lehigh's Vicky Lattanzio earned the win by pitching five scoreless innings and striking out one; Christine Campbell picked up the save.
The Mountain Hawks (8-1) scored the game's lone run in the first inning. The Mountain Hawks' leadoff hitter reached base and later advanced to third where she would score on a wild pitch with two outs.
In the second inning, NU loaded the bases with three consecutive singles from
Amanda Werth, Ward and Clark. However, Niagara left the inning empty-handed. Lehigh was held hitless in four of the last five innings; though the Purple Eagles, who had a 5-3 advantage in hits, were unable to push across a run.
Bucknell 10, Niagara 5The Purple Eagles (0-6) fell to the Bucknell Bison, 10-5, in their second game on Monday.
Katelyn Gruarin opened the scoring with a solo homer in the first inning. However, the Bison pushed across four runs each in the second and third innings to take an 8-1 lead.
NU trimmed the deficit to 8-5 in its half of the third inning on four runs with two outs;
Chanelle Ward and
Brianna Clark each had two-run singles. The Bison (12-8) added one run in the fifth and sixth innings while the Purple Eagles went scoreless with one hit over the final four innings.
Gruarin went 2-for-4 with two runs and one RBI and
Desarae Maldonado went 2-for-4 with one run.
Niagara continues play tomorrow against Bucknell at 12:15 p.m. and Hampton at 4:45 p.m.
