CLERMONT, Fla. - The Saint Mary's softball team earned a 5-4 (8 innings) win over Juniata but fell in a 9-2 final against Susquehanna to close out their spring break trip in Florida.

 

The Belles forced the Eagles into stranding a pair of runners in the top of the first inning. Juniata plated a run in the top of the third inning and added a second run in the fourth.

 

Saint Mary's got on the scoreboard in the bottom of the fourth. Mary Charniak reached on an error, and Caitlin Traxler drove her in two batters later with a double. Libby Bierbaum drew a walk, and McKenna Myers drew a two-out walk later in the inning. Sam Mikitka laced a single to right field to drive in Traxler to knot the game at 2-2. Leah Zimmerman then drew a bases-loaded walk to plate Bierbaum for a 3-2 lead.

 

The Eagles countered with two runs in the top of the fifth on a two-run single. The Belles countered with a run in the sixth to knot things up at 4-4. Rylee Hershberger singled up the middle, and Madi Ingolia came in to pinch run. Sam Mikitka singled, and an error two batters later saw McKenna Shoupe reach safely to load the bases. A come-back grounder was mis-played by the Eagles' pitcher on a ball hit by Mary Charniak as Ingolia came in to score.

 

The Belles forced the Eagles into stranding a runner in the seventh, but the Belles also had a pair of runners stranded in the bottom half of the inning. With the international tiebreaker rule in effect, Juniata started the eighth with a runner on second. A sacrifice bunt put the runner on third with one out gone. Libby Bierbaum induced a come-back pop up out, and Leah Zimmerman collected a fly out in right field to end the top half of the inning. Madi Minton came in to pinch run while starting the inning on second for the Belles. Leah Zimmerman put down a sacrifice bunt to move Minton to third, and a single to right field by McKenna Shoupe drove in Minton for the game-winning run.

 

Rylee Hershberger went 3-for-4 in the win. Sam Mikitka was 2-for-4 with an RBI. Caitlin Traxler hit a double with an RBI and a run, and McKenna Shoupe had a hit and an RBI. Leah Zimmerman drove in a run while Mary Charniak, Libby Bierbaum, Madi Ingolia, and Madi Minton each scored a run. Bierbaum earned the pitching win after a complete-game effort and allowed only two earned runs with four strikeouts.

 

Susquehanna plated four runs in the second and added four runs in the third to jump out to a quick 8-0 lead. 

 

The Belles continued to battle as Saint Mary's got on the scoreboard in the top of the fourth. Rylee Hershberger led off with a single, and Caitlin Traxler drew a walk. Libby Bierbaum then added a single of her own to load the bases. Alexis Rauch used a walk to drive in Hershberger. Two batters later, Sam Mikitka used a ground out to drive in Traxler to make it an 8-2 game.

 

The River Hawks plated a run in the bottom half of the inning. Rylee Hershberger and Libby Bierbaum each hit a double in the fifth and the sixth, but the Belles were unable to push a run across in either chance. Down to their final at-bats, Saint Mary's was retired in order to end the contest by the 9-2 margin.

 

Rylee Hershberger had a 2-for-3 effort with a double and a run, and Libby Bierbaum went 2-for-3 at the plate with a double in game two. Mary Charniak added a double, and Hershberger and Caitlin Traxler each scored a run. Alexis Rauch and Sam Mikitka each collected an RBI for the Belles. Traxler shouldered the pitching loss after 2.1 innings of work with a strikeout. Mikitka came on in relief and went the final 3.2 with three strikeouts while allowing just two hits.

 

The Belles (1-9) are back in action on Saturday, March 23 when they host Wheaton for a doubleheader starting at 1:00 p.m.