Eagles Split With Rangers on Senior Day
HUNTINGDON, PA- The Juniata softball team split again with visiting Drew, losing 9-5 in the first before winning 3-2, Sunday afternoon on a sometimes overcast and sometimes sunny day at West End Field for Senior Day.
HUNTINGDON, PA- The Juniata softball team split again with visiting Drew, losing 9-5 in the first before winning 3-2, Sunday afternoon on a sometimes overcast and sometimes sunny day at West End Field for Senior Day.
The Eagles got to work immediately it the first, with Cate Baran (Tyrone, Pa. / Tyrone Area HS) drawing a leadoff walk. With one out, Maya McLeod (San Diego, Calif. / La Jolla Country Day School) walloped a double to right-center, and Alison Superka (Smokerun, Pa. / Glendale) put a double in the exact same place to double the Eagle lead.
A sac fly in the fourth narrowed the JC advantage to one and was a harbinger of things to come.
In the bottom of the fifth, the Rangers exploded for seven runs on six hits combined with two JC errors to make it 8-2. They scored one more in sixth to push their lead to seven.
In the bottom half of the inning, with Catherine Miller (Huntingdon, Pa. / Huntingdon Area) and Superka at first and second. Alaney Vereshack (Smokerun, Pa. / Glendale) smashed a ball to straightaway center over the fence to make it 9-5, her first career home run, but the Eagles couldn't muster any more runs.
The Rangers went ahead in the top of the first on an RBI single to left-center, and another run crossed the plate on a JC error. The Eagles responded in the bottom half of the inning.
Baran again started the game off with a walk, and with two outs, Superka blasted a home run to left that caromed off the scoreboard to tie the game at 2-2. The blast was Superka's sixth of the season, which is tied for the most in a season in program history. She is now tied with Miller, who hit six in 2019, and Jennifer O'Neill (2010).
In the bottom of the second, Madison Wrightstone (York Haven, Pa. / Northeastern H.S.) singled to left and got to second on the third. She advanced to third on Ruthie Betts (Hawk Run, Pa. / West Branch Area Jr./Sr. H.S.) groundout and Caleigh Love (Yardley, Pa. / Pennsbury HS) drove her in with an RBI-single to right, which proved to be the winning run.
The Rangers had a chance in the seventh, as they had runners at first and third with two outs, but Miller induced a ground ball to short to end the game.
Miller went the distance for the Eagles for the win, her second complete-game win of the weekend. She allowed eight hits, two runs with one earned, one walk, and seven strikeouts.
Juniata will host Scranton to begin their final series of the regular season, Saturday at 1:00.