NEW HAVEN, Conn. - - A seventh inning rally fell just short in the opener but carried over into the nightcap for the Wilmington University softball team as it split a Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference doubleheader, 5-6 and 10-2 (5 inn.), with Chestnut Hill on Thursday afternoon at Asbury Field.
Trailing 6-0 going into their final at-bat of the opener, the Wildcats (27-16, 13-9 CACC) put together a two-out rally that fell just short. The Wildcats scored five runs with two outs and had the tying run in scoring position when the game ended. But it wasn't all for naught, as they carried the momentum into the nightcap, jumping all over the Griffins (11-25, 9-11 CACC) from the get-go.
The Griffins scored all six runs in the top of the second and the Wildcats couldn't get anything together until the seventh inning. Kaitlyn Slater started the seventh with a leadoff double before Colby Wyatt walked with one out. Now with two outs in the inning, Danielle Bradley was hit a pitch to load the bases. Becca Stanley turned the lineup over with an infield RBI single before Rosa'Lynn Burton doubled to left center for two more runs.
With a new pitcher in the circle, Jazmeen Llamas kept the lineup moving by beating out another infield single to score Stanley. Whitney DeMora then pulled one into the hole at short to score Burton and put Llamas, the tying run, on second base. But Slater struck out swinging to end the comeback bid, 6-5.
The seventh inning may have jumpstarted the bats for the nightcap, however, as they came out of the gates and put up three runs in the bottom of the first. Slater doubled in Llamas and DeMora before Wyatt added an RBI single for the 3-0 lead.
An error with the bases loaded allowed the Griffins to cut the deficit to 3-2 after the top of the second, but the Wildcats widened the gap from the third inning on. Stanley hit a two-run double to the gap in left center before Burton added an RBI single back up the middle for the 6-2 lead after three innings.
Klebart hit a two-out RBI single in the fourth before the Wildcats put the game away in the fifth. Stanley started the seventh with a triple off the fence in left and Burton brought her in with yet another RBI single. DeMora pulled one through the left side to score Burton and Wyatt brought on the eight-run mercy rule with a two-out double to left, easily scoring DeMora for the 10-2 victory.
Game-two starter Danielle Bradley was only in trouble in that second inning, moving to 10-5 on the season with the win. She struck out three while allowing seven hits and two walks.
Burton went 5-for-8 with a double, four RBI, and two runs scored in the doubleheader. Colby Wyatt went 3-for-3 with two RBI in game two while Llamas, DeMora, Klebart, and Stanley all had two hits in the nightcap.
The Wildcats busy week continues Saturday as they head to Kutztown for a nonconference doubleheader. The first pitch is slated for 12:00 p.m.