Garden City, N.Y. (April 15, 2022) – The Franklin Pierce University softball team (21-3, 9-3 NE10) kicked off another busy weekend with a split decision in a doubleheader matchup at Adelphi University (24-10, 11-3 NE10) on Friday afternoon. The Ravens claimed an opening victory by a score of 4-2, but ran into some troubles in the closing contest, slipping to the Panthers 11-3 in six innings.  

Game One:

The Ravens were the first to get on the board in what would be the only scoring inning for both sides in game one. Kickstarting the scoring, with a runner at first base, right fielder Ashley Cangiano (North Attleboro, Mass.)  homered for the second time this season over the right field fence, putting the Ravens ahead 2-0. Four batters later, the Ravens then saw their lead expanded to 4-0 off a double to the gap in left center field by senior infielder Maiah Lopez (Oxnard, Calif.), scoring two runners at first and second base from prior singles.

Adelphi would return fire in the bottom half of the inning, cashing in on a pair of solo home runs from infielders Ashley Wengryn and Faith Camilleri. With the 4-2 score at the end of the inning, that would prove to be enough for Franklin Pierce.

Sophomore Sabrina Gonzalez (Chandler, Ariz.) picked up her team leading tenth win off the start, working 6.0 innings and allowing two runs while scattering five hits, striking out two batters. Senior Abbey Primavera (Spring Hill, Fla.) sealed the deal for the Ravens in game one, entering in the final inning, tossing 15 pitches to earn the save.

Game Two:

Adelphi rung the bell first in game two, pushing home three early runs in the first inning to attempt a momentum shift from the first game. In the early half of the second inning, the Ravens took advantage of an Adelphi fielding error that saw Lita Vorseth (Mesa, Ariz.) and Haley Bigwood (Athol, Mass.) cross home plate from second and third base, cutting the deficit to 3-2.

However, the runs continued to pour in for Adelphi in the bottom half of the inning, as the Panthers would tack on six more runs on three hits to extend the lead to 9-3. Faith Camilleri delivered once again for the Panthers, going yard with a three-run homer to center field, her second home run of the afternoon.

In an attempt to climb back into the game, the Ravens would score again in the top of the third. Freshman Bella Williams (Phoenix, Ariz.) showed off some speed by scoring from second base on a single to left field from Ashley Cangiano (North Attleboro, Mass.).

The game would continue through two quieter innings before Adelphi closed it out in the sixth. After three straight walks with one out, the Panthers would score the final two runs from back-to-back singles off the bats of Brianna Pearson and Kendall Winn.

Abbey Primavera (Spring Hill, Fla.) returned to the circle with the start after her relief appearance in game one, but was relieved by sophomore pitcher Abbey Poirot (Winstead, Conn.) after surrendering nine runs on seven hits. Poirot would pitch through two silent innings before making way for junior Madison Labrie (New Ipswich, N.H.) who pitched the final inning. With the loss, Primavera maintains a solid overall record, moving to 8-2 on the season.

Softball will continue their weekend road trip tomorrow, remaining in New York state for an afternoon doubleheader matchup at Pace University, with games at 11AM and 1PM.