ELIZABETHTOWN, Pa.- The Juniata softball team bounced back with a split at Elizabethtown. They fell in game one 4-3 before romping to a 12-3 win in five innings in game two.
Kassandra Roush started game one with a single to center, advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by Alex Douglass, and scored after a throwing error by the second baseman. In the bottom half of the inning, Elizabethtown countered with a two-run double to right center, which scored runners from first and third. Gracie Ruch replaced Maryn Swank on the mound and got out of the inning without more runs crossing the plate.
In the bottom of the third, the hosts capitalized on an error by the Eagles to score two runs with two outs to double their lead.
Claire Thomas mashed a home run after Emily Eutsey was hit by a pitch to bring JC back within one, but Juniata couldn't find a game-tying run.
In Game 2, the Eagles exploded out of the gate. They put up six runs on six hits in the first inning and took advantage of two Blue Jay errors.
A three-run blast from Etown in the bottom of the second saw the lead get cut in half.
K. Roush's RBI single to center in the third pushed the lead back to four, and Thomas's second homer of the day pushed the lead back to five in the fourth, 8-3.
Juniata did the rest of their damage in the fifth. Douglass reached safely on a bunt and stole second, and Alison Superka drew a walk. Jessie Hunt lined an RBI double to right, and Thomas walked. Back-to-back RBI singles from Morgan Brumbaugh and Caleigh Love plated two more runs, with Dani Berlin's sacrifice fly to center making it 12-3.
Rylea Lynch, who came in the third inning, allowed a hit before going 1-2-3 to end the game and get the win. She allowed two hits with two strikeouts in her three innings of work. K. Roush was 3-4 with a stolen base, two RBI, and a run scored, while Love was 3-4 with a double, two RBI, a stolen base, and two runs scored.
Juniata will open play at home against Mount Aloysius on Wednesday at 3:00.
