LEESBURG, Fla. - The Saint Mary's softball team came up on the short end of a 5-4 final against Juniata and a 12-6 contest against Albertus Magnus on Sunday.

 

In the opener, the Eagles got on the scoreboard in the top of the third inning with three hits while capitalizing on an error. The Belles came right back with a response in the bottom of the inning. Leah Zimmerman dropped a single into left field, McKenna Shoupe legged out a bunt single, and Caitlin Traxler drew a walk to load the bases. A fielder's choice to shortstop on a ball hit by Libby Bierbaum saw everyone advance safely while Zimmerman scored. A passed ball then advanced everyone 60 feet with Shoupe scoring on the play. Two batters later, Alexis Rauch drew a walk to put a pair on base with Caitlin Traxler on third. Another passed ball pushed Traxler across home plate for the 3-2 lead.

 

Juniata pushed two runs across in the top of the fourth as the lead traded hands again with the Eagles going up 4-3. Saint Mary's countered yet again in the bottom half of the frame. McKenna Shoupe added another single, and Libby Bierbaum hit a well-placed single, which allowed the speedy Shoupe to come all the way around and score on the play.

 

Juniata regained the lead in the top of the fifth with an unearned run. Down to their final at-bats in the bottom of the seventh, the Belles nearly put together the late-game comeback. Libby Bierbaum led off with a single before Kennedy Cornett came in to pinch run. Alexis Rauch hit a double to right-center two batters later to put the tying run on third and the game-winning run at second. The comeback effort, however, was halted there as back-to-back outs ended the game by the 5-4 final. 

 

McKenna Shoupe went 2-for-3 with two runs scored and a walk, and Libby Bierbaum was 2-for-4 with a pair of RBI. Leah Zimmerman, McKenna Myers, Alexis Rauch, and Sam Mikitka each had a hit for the Belles as Rauch tallied a double and a sacrifice. Mary Charniak shouldered the loss in the circle despite allowing just one hit and one run with two strikeouts in three innings of relief.

 

In the contest against Albertus Magnus, the Belles had a chance to get on the scoreboard in the top of the second. Sam Mikitka laced a single to the right-center gap, and Leah Zimmerman added a single up the middle to put a pair on with two outs. A foul pop up was caught by the Falcons to stop the scoring chance for Saint Mary's.

 

Albertus Magnus used a big second inning to gain a lot of momentum as the Falcons posted eight runs in their at-bats. The Falcons added two more in the third to gain a 10-0 lead. 

 

The Belles broke through into the scoring column in the top of the fourth inning. McKenna Myers led off with a single to the left side of the infield, and Rylee Hershberger followed with a single to left field. The pair advanced 60 feet on a ground out by Mary Charniak, and Sam Mikitka used the sun to her advantage and drove in the pair with a double to right field. Leah Zimmerman reached on an error to put two runners on base, and Madi Ingolia - who came in to run for Mikitka -  scored on a bunt single by McKenna Shoupe to make it a 10-3 game.

 

The Falcons got a run back in the bottom of the fourth, but the Belles came right back with two more runs of their own in the top of the fifth. Libby Bierbaum hit a single to center field, and McKenna Myers used a single to left field before an error on the play allowed the pair to move into scoring position. Mary Charniak used a ground out to the right side of the infield to drive in Bierbaum, and Madi Ingolia singled to left field to drive in Myers to cut the deficit to 11-5.

 

Albertus Magnus plated a run in the fifth, and Saint Mary's worked to try to put together a late-inning comeback. McKenna Shoupe reached on an error on a bunt as the errant throw allowed her to advance to second on the play. Shoupe moved up to third on a ground out from Alexis Rauch, and Caitlin Traxler dropped a double down the left field line to easily plate Shoupe. Traxler moved to third on a ground out, but the Belles were unable to add to their run total in the sixth. Down to their final at-bats, Saint Mary's unfortunately was retired in order to end the game by the 12-6 final.

 

Sam Mikitka was 2-for-2 at the dish with a double and a pair of RBI. Caitlin Traxler and McKenna Myers each added a double with Traxler driving in one and Myers scoring twice. McKenna Shoupe, Libby Bierbaum, Rylee Hershberger, Madi Ingolia, and Leah Zimmerman each added a hit. Ingolia and Shoupe each scored a run and drove one in while Bierbaum and Hershberger each scored once. Bierbaum suffered the loss in the circle on the day while striking out two. Mary Charniak came on in relief and went four complete with one earned run allowed.

 

The Belles (0-2) are back in action on Monday as they face Montclair State at 9:00 a.m. before taking on Pitt.-Greensburg at 1:30 p.m. in Kissimmee, Florida.