(Posted April 17, 2004)

JUNIATA SPLITS ROAD DOUBLEHEADER AT WIDENER
Juniata 11, Seton Hill 3

Huntingdon, Pa. ? Abby Sener (Donegal/Marietta) delivered a two-run single in the top of the fifth to propel the Juniata College softball team to a 6-4 victory in the first game of its road doubleheader against Widener in Chester Saturday afternoon. In the second game the Eagles were held to three hits by Widener hurler Nicole D?Annunzio as the Eagles suffered a 3-2 set-back. Juniata is now 15-8 on the year and 4-6 in conference. Widener upped its mark to 21-9 overall and 6-5 in the conference.

Trailing the Pioneers 4-3 heading into the top of the fifth, Sener drove home Becky Herr (Hamburg/Hamburg) and Leanne Leymeister (Blue Mountain/Orwigsburg) and put the Eagles up 5-4. Herr started the inning with a double, while Leymeister reached on a walk and moved into scoring position with a stolen base. Juniata would make the lead stand up and added an insurance run in the seventh on a sacrifice fly from Leymeister.

The two runs in the fifth marked the second time Juniata needed to come back in the game. The home team started quickly?scoring a single run in the bottom of the first off Juniata starter Renae Hobbs (Mount Union/Mount Union). Juniata answered back with three runs in the top of the inning. Sener was again involved as she doubled to start the frame. Amy Gable (Kennard-Dale/Stewartstown) and Hobbs followed with singles, with Hobbs? knock bringing in Sener. Herr then plated both runners with another single, and the Eagles held a comfortable 3-1 lead.

The lead was short lived as the Pioneers moved in front again by matching Juniata?s three runs with three of their own in the bottom of the third. Megan Heath highlighted the scoring by drilling a two-run home run to straight-away center field that made the score 4-3 Widener.

But Hobbs would hold the home team at bay the rest of the game, as she finished off her ninth win of the season. The Eagle sophomore allowed twelve hits, but struck out four and left seven Pioneers stranded on base.

Sener, Gable, Herr and Allison D?Ambrosia (State College/Boalsburg) all notched two hits in the game for Juniata, as the Eagles knocked out 10 hits in the victory. Herr and Sener both had a pair of RBI, while six different players scored in the game for Juniata.

Juniata?s offense was not able to keep the momentum rolling in game two as the Eagles were limited to four hits in support of starter Lizzie Bartosik (Penn/Granger, In.). Bartosik pitched a solid game, allowing three runs on nine hits in six innings.

Two of those runs came in the first three innings, as Widener scored a single run in the first and third innings. The damage could have been greater by Bartosik fanned a batter for the final out of the third with runners on second and third.

Juniata?s bats were silent through the first four innings, although the Blue and Gold did put two runners on base in the first and another three on in the fourth without scoring. Juniata?s first hit came in the fifth, but it was a big one as Sarah Patterson (Danville/Danville) tripled to drive in Hobbs with Juniata?s first run. Then with two out, D?Ambrosia delivered a single that plated Patterson and tied the game at two.

Widener answered with a pair of hits and the go-ahead run in the bottom of the fifth, and then thwarted a Juniata rally in the top of the seventh as Juniata put runners on second and third with one out. D?Annunzio recorded a strikeout and a ground out to end the game.

Juniata will return to action on Monday when the Eagles host Elizabethtown in a conference game.

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