CLERMONT, Fla. – Tuesday was another chance for the Haverford College softball team to battle some of the top programs from across the country. The Fords once again found themselves in games late, but ultimately fell to Meredith and No. 10 Alfred by respective 5-2 and 3-1 margins.
In the opening game against Meredith, Sara Tauriello and the Avenging Angels' Taylor Jackson locked off in a pitcher's duel early. With Meredith as the home team, Tauriello struck out three of the first seven batters she faced and allowed just one hit over the first three innings. Haverford put runners on base in each of the first two innings but ultimately left those runners stranded on the base paths.
The Avenging Angels got the scoring started in the bottom of the fourth with both of their runs in the inning coming with two down. Tauriello got a pair of pop ups on the infield that were sandwiched around a double as she retired 11 of the first 13 batters that she faced. However, a two-out double and later error in the outfield allowed the game's first two runs to scamper home. Those same two-out hits come through for Meredith in the fifth inning as Tauriello retired the first two batters, but three straight hits made it a 4-0 game.
Haverford started to get the offensive momentum going in the sixth inning as the Fords capitalized on an error that allowed Miwa Wenzel to reach first base. A double from Kristin Tatum during the ensuing at-bat promptly put two runners in scoring position and just one down before a walk to Kendall Chambers loaded the bases. Freshman Kaitlyn Guild finally broke through with a single through the left side that scored two runs. However, the Avenging Angels were able to strand the potential game-tying run at the end of the inning.
Meredith added a run in its half of the sixth to set the score at 5-2 heading into the final inning. Haverford got a two-out single from freshman Rachel Wolfson, but could do nothing further to close the gap. Guild finished the game with a pair of hits in her three at-bats. Tauriello worked her way through the fifth inning before Chambers struck out two batters in her one inning of work during the opening game.
Against No. 10 Alfred, it was Haverford that struck first with an RBI in the top of the second inning. However, the Saxons quickly answered in the bottom half of the inning to make the score 1-1. In their next at-bats, the Fords put runners on the corners but were unable to do anything with that opportunity.
The score remained deadlocked until the bottom of the fifth when a one-out triple gave the Saxons the lead they would hold onto for the remainder of the contest. Alfred added a sacrifice fly in its final at-bats of the game for the eventual 3-1 final score.
Softball will now have a day away from competition before wrapping up the first week of the season on Thursday and Friday. Four games remain in the Sunshine State for the Fords as they will next battle Bethany (W. Va.) on Thursday at 1 p.m. Haverford will also face Marywood later that afternoon.