Softball Splits with Beacons and Penguins - Presbyterian College (2024)

• Box Score 1
• Box Score 2

Game Recap: Softball | 2/17/2024 9:44:00 PM | PC Athletic Communications

CLINTON, S.C. – The Presbyterian College softball team went through a tumultuous afternoon on their home turf during the second day of the Pinnacle Invitational, getting the doubleheader started with a 6-1 victory over Valparaiso on Saturday before falling to Youngstown State in the nightcap by an 8-4 clip.

Presby's offensive numbers bumped up a notch after a mostly-timid day in that department 24 hours earlier, outhitting both the Beacons and Penguins for a total of 17 connections. A four-score 5^th created the desired separation versus Valpo, although a similar late-game surge from YSU allowed the visitors to pull away as the sun settled.

Rookie Kasey Wolfe advanced to a 2-0 mark when named the starting pitcher, backing up her Big South Freshman of the Week status with a five-K, one-run effort in the five-score triumph over Valparaiso.

Head coach David Williams' crew will see the closing stretch of the round robin tournament on Sunday afternoon, playing a sole outing with Morehead State at 12:15 PM following a neutral matchup beforehand.

NOTABLES

- Wolfe seemingly makes another convincing case for conference weekly honors after going 4-for-7 on Saturday, bringing her season average to .500 on the dot (12-for-24). The Spartanburg native wangled in two runs against the Penguins, granting her a team-high eight RBI in as many games this year.

- Sophom*ore catcher Maddi Wood earned the highest single-game RBI count of Presby's season in the W over Valpo, responsible for a quartet of runs (four of the team's six). The Clinton High School graduate sailed her first career homer in the bottom of the 5^th, also bringing in fellow second-year mate Morgan Farthing.

- As a matter of fact, all three of Presbyterian's longballs at this stage have come from a new face to the program (Wood, Emma Yanes, and Logan Grice), a promising sign of things to come from a roster that holds an intriguing mix of youth and experience.

- Four separate PC players had at least two hits in a single seven-inning stretch on Saturday, boasting five that tallied a minimum of one RBI. Still holding the team's highest BA in the nine-hole, centerfielder Graice DeCuir scored the last two runs of the aforementioned victory over the Beacons.

- Williams' bullpen amassed 14 strikeouts in the two-parter, allowing fewer than two scores for the third time already on their way to the round one win.

GAME ONE – PRESBYTERIAN (3-4) def. VALPARAISO (1-7), 6-1

- Wood truly was the star of the show as PC never trailed against the Beacons, drawing a bases-loaded walk in the first frame before scoring another in her next at-bat during the 3^rd. That's when the left-center bomb happened in the 5^th, boosting what was a 2-1 advantage into a three-score lead with a sole swing.

- DeCuir's two-RBI single brought around Yanes and DP Gracyn Hyatt, pushing Presby to a relatively stress-free win while Wolfe and Jenna Greene kept knocking the defense back.
- Six out of nine in the Blue Hose order smacked at least one hit, adding three walks to the table in the school's 20^th home victory throughout the past 12 months.

GAME TWO – YOUNGSTOWN STATE (7-2) def. PRESBYTERIAN (3-5), 8-4

- For the second night in a row against the Penguins, Presbyterian struck first in the opening inning. This time, it was Wolfe who was the culprit on an RBI-base hit that brought home designated batter Kendall Owens.

- Youngstown – who was bested by Morehead State earlier in the afternoon – stormed back with four unanswered runs in the 3^rd and 4^th innings, although an Owens/Wolfe/Grice rally in the 5^th quickly brought things right back to square one.

- In three consecutive at-bats, PC had tied the game up at four apiece with identical singles from that trio. This caused YSU to switch pitchers from starter Maci Boggess to reliever Autumn Behlke, holding the Blue Hose to one more hit which came in the 7^th.

- The Penguins offered up four scores in the top of the penultimate inning, with Presbyterian turning to freshmen Lanie Ruscoe and Riley Pennington in the circle down the stretch. Both submitted their collegiate debuts on the night, tossing the last three stanzas.

UP NEXT

- PC hopes to give Morehead State a taste of its own medicine after the Eagles left Clinton with a 6-3 win on Friday, playing the 10^th and final outing of the Invitational near lunchtime on Sunday.

- That affair yesterday was the first-ever encounter between the two programs, with the Blue Hose looking to split their series with the Ohio Valley Conference squad.