KISSIMMEE, Fla. - The Haverford College softball team (2-4) faced defeats in a pair of matchups at The Spring Games Showcase on Tuesday at the Fortune Road Softball Complex, succumbing to Catholic by a 7-2 score before dropping the afternoon contest to No. 7 Case Western Reserve, 8-4.
Catholic 7, Haverford 2
In a mid-morning clash with the Cardinals, first-year starter Kayleigh Bodak encountered early trouble as Sophia Fike tripled into right field to start the game, later scoring on a wild pitch. After Elise Faxon walked with two outs, Alex Garza doubled to give Catholic a 2-0 advantage.
The Fords struggled against starting pitcher Aubrynn Arcement, who navigated around two baserunners in the first inning, delivering a perfect second and third inning. She allowed only two unearned runs in her complete-game effort. An RBI triple in the fourth by Toni Ruley added insurance for Catholic, and the Cardinals extended their lead to 7-0 in the fifth inning with Katie Scolese, Mia Szap, Arcement, and Kerri Hatcliffe all crossing home.
Haverford staged a comeback in the seventh inning, displaying resilience despite the deficit. Jocelyn Leal reached on an infield single, advanced to second on a passed ball, and Abby Litchfield launched a single into left field. Maddie Etheridge grounded out, moving Litchfield into scoring position, and she came home on a passed ball, cutting the lead to 7-2. Sarah Fan's apparent single in the right field was nullified as she was called out for stepping out of the batter's box, concluding the contest.
Addie Sapirstein recorded two hits at the top of the lineup to lead the Fords in game one.
#7 Case Western Reserve 8, Haverford 4
CWRU, the nation's seventh-ranked team, secured an early lead with a run off Clarissa Smith, as Stevie Rieger notched a double and Kaili Gross delivered a sacrifice fly for a 1-0 advantage.
The Spartans added four more runs in the second, pulling ahead 5-0 with an error surrounded by three two-out singles. Haverford cut a run back with a four-hit fifth. Maddie Etheridge and pinch-hitter Abby Olivier added singles, and Sapirstein loaded the bases with another single. Case Western brought in Jenna Jaklich from the bullpen in an attempt to halt the rally. Haverford continued the offensive onslaught, with Leal reaching on an RBI single, bringing in a run.
Jaklich escaped the inning, but Haverford added two more runs in the sixth. Lauren Martin and Litchfield singled to start the frame, and Tessa Pearlstein moved the pair into scoring position. Olivier scored two on an infield single as Haverford closed within two in the penultimate frame.
CWRU struck for three in the sixth with RBI singles from Isabella Russo and Karen Potts, but Haverford rallied in the seventh. Leal singled into left field, advanced on a wild pitch, and Kyra Van Denburgh's double plated a run. Lexi Miskey was then brought into the pitcher's circle, delivering back-to-back strikeouts of Martin and Litchfield to secure the victory.
Sapirstein, Leal, Martin, and Olivier each had multi-hit contests for the Fords. Smith struck out four in her six innings of work, while Kylie Hosey was credited with the win for the Spartans, logging four innings and striking out two.
Softball now takes Wednesday off before returning to action on Thursday, March 14 for Pi Day matchups with Lasell (10:15 a.m.) and Hamilton (12:45 p.m.) at the Sleepy Hollow complex in Leesburg, Fla. as The Spring Games continue.