GLASSBORO, N.J. – The Haverford College softball team (5-9) dropped a pair of non-conference games in Glassboro, New Jersey, against No. 19 Rowan (15-5) The Fords dropped game one of the doubleheader 4-1 before falling short again in game two, 8-2.
In the circle, Haverford started the day with the reigning Centennial Conference Pitcher of the Week, Emily Reinstadtler. The senior pitched six solid innings allowing four hits and four runs while striking out five batters. Abby Marquis registered Haverford's only extra-base hit with a double in the fourth inning. The junior was also the only Ford to register more than one hit, finishing the game with two.
Rowan got out to a 1-0 lead in the first inning due to a Haverford throwing error, but things would quiet down until the fourth. Reinstadtler kept most of the offensive action under control, not allowing Rowan to hit anything out of the infield in the first turn through the order. Thanks to a Nikki Kingsland sacrifice fly to center field, the Fords tied things up in the top of the fourth. On third base, Mia Kessinger tagged up and sprinted home while Marquis advanced to second. However, the inning ended after Tessa Pearlstein popped up for the inning's third out.
The deciding inning wound up being the fifth. After a walk and a fielding error, Rowan successfully put two batters on base. At that moment, Payton MacNair sent one deep to left field for a three-run home run, which would eventually stand as the game-winning hit for the Profs. Maya Casey started for the Fords in game two, facing 26 batters and allowing four hits while striking out two. Things remained scoreless until the bottom of the third. Then, McNair played the hero again as she doubled to left field to drive in a run, making it 1-0 in favor of Rowan.
The Fords struggled to get anything going offensively as they didn't register their first hit until the sixth inning. By then, Rowan had built a 3-0 lead and had no plans of letting it go. Madison Hujber and Maddie Etheridge brought the no-hitter to an end. Still, the inning would end with only one run for the visitors. Rowan opened up a more significant lead in the bottom of the sixth with four hits leading to five runs. Kessinger hit a home run in the seventh inning, but it was too little too late for Haverford by then. Hujber finished the game 1-for-2 with a run scored. Rachel McQueen saw time in the circle facing eight batters, striking out one, and allowing three runs in another solid outing.
Softball will retake the field tomorrow, March 31, as they return home to Class of '95 for a doubleheader with Arcadia. Game one begins at 3 p.m., while the second game will start shortly after 5 p.m.