Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 The 11th-ranked Case Western Reserve University softball team opened its 2023 season on Saturday in dominating fashion at the Triangle Softball Classic in Raleigh, North Carolina, claiming a 3-1 win over Huntingdon in the first game of the day and following that with an 11-3 win in six innings against Averett University in the second game.
Game 1 – CWRU 3, Huntingdon 1
Sophomore Lexi Miskey allowed just one run through seven innings with 10 strikeouts and senior Carli Tucci went two-for-three with a home run and a double to lead the Spartans to a 3-1 win and hand Huntingdon just its second loss through 13 games this season.
Miskey went the distance in the game, allowing a run in the first inning but holding the Hawks scoreless the rest of the way in the complete game win. She scattered nine hits and a walk in the effort while tallying her sixth career double-digit strikeout game.
The Spartans fell behind 1-0 in the bottom of the first, but Tucci evened the score with a two-out solo home run in the top of the second. CWRU took the lead with a two-run third, as junior Kela Jagoda led the inning off with a single, stole second and third, and scored on a single by junior Jordon Manworren. A run-scoring single by sophomore Isabella Russo a batter later gave CWRU a 3-1 lead, and the Spartans would hold the lead the rest of the way behind Miskey's strong effort on the mound.
Jagoda finished the game two-for-three with three stolen bases and Russo added a two-for-three performance as well.
Huntingdon's Crimson Wells suffered the loss, falling to 1-1 on the year, as the Hawks dropped to 11-2 overall following the loss.
Game 2 – CWRU 11, Averett 3 (6 inn.)
The Spartans' offense broke out for 11 runs on 12 hits in the second game of the day to defeat Averett 11-3 in six innings.
Tucci added another double and three runs batted in, going two-for-three in the contest. Senior Amanda Riely was two-for-four with four runs scored in the game, and junior shortstop KaiLi Gross connected on a home run, going one-for-two with two runs, an RBI, two walks, and a stolen base. Jagoda and first-year Brianna Landers each stole a pair of bases.
Sophomore Kylie Hosey allowed three runs on seven hits and a walk over seven innings and struck out nine Averett batters to earn the win in the game.
Averett scored a run in the top of the first but CWRU evened the score in the bottom of the second on an RBI single by first-year Elizabeth Berry. Gross gave the Spartans the lead in the bottom of the third with a one-out solo home run, and CWRU scored three more runs in the frame on an RBI single by Manworren and a two-run single by Tucci. After Averett scored two in the top of the fourth to cut the Spartans' lead to 5-3, CWRU added five runs in the bottom of the frame to go ahead 10-3. The score remained the same until the bottom of the sixth when first-year Tara Fritscher ended the game early with a run-scoring single to give the Spartans the 11-3 win.
Averett fell to 2-3 with the setback, as starter Taylor Sullivan took the loss to fall to 1-2 on the year.
The Spartans will conclude play at the Triangle Softball Classic tomorrow with games against top-ranked Christopher Newport at 10:00 a.m. and Arcadia at 12:00 p.m.
