(Posted March 21, 2005)

Juniata 2, Pitt-Bradford 1
Juniata 0, Pitt-Bradford 0

Huntingdon, Pa. ? The Juniata College softball team bounced back from a rough weekend by capturing a win and a tie in a non-conference doubleheader against Pitt-Bradford in Huntingdon Monday afternoon. The Eagles rallied for a 2-1 victory in game one, and then saw the second game end in a 0-0 tie after it was called after six innings due to darkness.

In game one, Allison D?Ambrosia (State College/Boalsburg) delivered a bases-loaded two-RBI double to turn a 1-0 deficit into a 2-1 Juniata lead in the bottom of the fifth inning. The double came after Jen Piston (Central Bucks East/Jamison), Kim Stoia (Morris Hills/Rockaway, N.J.) and Leann Leymeister (Blue Mountain/Orwigsburg) each singled to load the bases. Panthers hurler Mallory Kane then struck out the next two batters to get out of the inning.

The visitors would threaten to tie the score in the top of the seventh when an error and a single put runners on second and third with two outs. Stoia responded by forcing a fielder?s choice groundout to secure her third win of the season.

Juniata?s freshman hurler settled in after a rocky first inning. In the first Pitt-Bradford?s Catrina Retterer led off with a single, moved to second and third on groundouts, and then scored on a wild pitch. Calista Walker followed with a two-out double, which was followed by a single from Tiffany Washington but Renae Hobbs (Mount Union/Mount Union) threw out Walker at the plate to keep the score at one.

The Eagles tried to scrap back into the game, but were held at bay until the fourth. Juniata had just two hits outside of the fourth inning. Stoia was able to keep Juniata in the game as she allowed just five hits and struck out four batters in the complete-game win.

Leymeister and Stoia each finished 2-for-3 in the game, while D?Ambrosia was 1-for-3 with the two RBI.

In game two the pitching was the story as the two teams combined for just eight hits and no runs.

Eagle starter Jessica Darrow (Wellsboro/Wellsboro) tossed four innings of shutout ball, allowing two hits and striking out two. Her greatest threat came in the fourth when a pair of walks and a single loaded the bases with one out. Darrow responded by getting a fly-out to right, and then having an infield grounder force runner interference which ended the inning.

Juniata put a pair of runners on off Pitt-Bradford starter Alison Bricker in the third. Piston led off with a single, and after a strikeout, Hobbs singled to put runners on first and second with one out. The next two batters grounded out to end the threat.

Lizzie Bartosik (Penn/Granger, In.) pitched the final two innings for Juniata. She pitched out of one threat when Brittany McLean led off the top of the sixth with a triple. Bartosik stranded her there by getting a strikeout, then a line out and a groundout.

Leymeister then started the bottom of the sixth with a single, the second of her team-best two hits. She was then forced out on a D?Ambrosia groundout. A sacrifice bunt moved pinch runner Zuzana Baranova (Huntingdon/Huntingdon) to second, but a groundout ended the threat.

Juniata is scheduled to return to action with a doubleheader at Division II Slippery Rock on Wednesday.

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Contact April Feagley at feaglea@juniata.edu or (814) 641-3131 for more information.