WHITTIER, Calif. – The Haverford College softball team (4-4) dropped both matchups at Whittier College on Thursday, falling to the host Poets (10-5) in an extra-innings thriller, 6-5, before battling No. 3 Case Western Reserve (9-5) in a hard-fought contest that saw the Spartans pull away late with seven runs over the final two frames.
Whittier 6, Haverford 5 (8 Innings)
Addie Sapirstein and Mia Kessinger led the Fords at the plate, with Kessinger launching a two-run home run in the fifth inning. Kaleigh Bodak started in the pitcher's circle for Haverford, allowing five runs (four earned) on nine hits and one walk over four innings.
Whittier struck first in the bottom of the first. With runners on second and third, Arianna Salazar singled home Mariah Rodriguez to put the Poets up 1-0.
Following a brief weather delay in the bottom of the third, with lightning in the area, Salazar struck again, driving a single up the middle to score Rodriguez. A Sydnee Verlin RBI groundout made it 3-0 before Sara Luna's two-run single extended the Poets' lead to 5-0 heading into the fourth inning.
Haverford got on the board in the fourth after an Addie Sapirstein double. The junior later scored when Abby Litchfield reached on an error by the Whittier left fielder, advancing to second on the play.
Bodak worked out of trouble in the bottom of the fourth, retiring three straight batters after allowing back-to-back hits. In the fifth, Kessinger crushed a two-run homer, scoring Lauren Martin and cutting the deficit to 5-3.
Anna Stowe took over in the circle in the bottom of the fifth and retired Whittier in order. The Fords kept the momentum going in the sixth. After singles from Grace Stowe and Sapirstein, Litchfield reached on a fielder's choice, with Stowe thrown out at home. Litchfield then stole second, setting the stage for Maddie Etheridge, who ripped a two-run single down the left-field line to tie the game at 5-5.
Whittier threatened in the bottom of the sixth, putting runners on second and third with no outs, but Stowe escaped unscathed with two pop-ups and a flyout.
After a scoreless seventh inning, Stowe returned to the circle for extras. She loaded the bases with no outs but escaped again with a lineout, groundout, and pop-up to send the game to the eighth.
Haverford couldn't get the offense going in the top of the eighth, giving Whittier a chance to win in the bottom half. After a sacrifice bunt moved the runner to third, Mikaela Pamplona hit a high pop-up to shallow right field. Martin called off Olivier, but the ball deflected off her glove in the California sun. As it ricocheted off the grass, Rodriguez crossed home plate for the walk-off run, giving Whittier a 6-5 victory.
#3 Case Western Reserve 12, Haverford 5
In their second game of the day, Haverford faced No. 3 Case Western Reserve in their only neutral-site matchup of the spring trip. The Spartans struck early, scoring single runs in each of the first two frames against Lauren Lamme. Kaili Gross homered in the first and went deep again in the third as part of a two-run inning, giving CWRU a 4-0 lead.
Haverford responded in the fourth with a three-run rally. Kyra Van Denburgh singled up the middle, and an error allowed Sapirstein to reach. With one out, Grace Stowe singled and advanced to second on the throw, plating Van Denburgh. Sapirstein then scored on an RBI groundout from Etheridge, and Lauren Martin followed with an RBI single to bring the Fords within one at 4-3.
After Isabella Russo put an insurance run on the board in the fifth with an RBI double, Kessinger led off the fifth with a single before Kamaha'o Bode launched a towering two-run homer to tie the game at 5-5 off Kylie Hosey.
However, CWRU responded in the sixth. Gross delivered an RBI single with the bases loaded to reclaim the lead before two-out RBIs from Russo and Elizabeth Berry broke the game open, putting the Spartans ahead 9-5.
Case Western tacked on three more in the seventh on four hits against Lamme, who re-entered in relief of Rachel McQueen. Gross, who finished 4-for-4 with five RBIs, added another run-scoring single, while Russo also had a four-hit night as part of the Spartans' 16-hit offensive explosion.
Van Denburgh had a two-hit night, while Bode drove in two with her fifth-inning homer for the Fords.
Haverford now turns its attention to Friday, when the Fords take on Pomona-Pitzer in a doubleheader. First pitch for game one with the Sagehens is set for 12 p.m. PT / 3 p.m. ET.