West Chester, Pa. – The Millersville University softball team traveled to West Chester University Sunday for the first meeting of the 2018 season. West Chester took both games of the doubleheader. West Chester used a nine-run fifth inning to win 10-2 in the second game after a 4-1 win in game one. 

The Marauders fell to 14-13 and 3-3 in conference play. The Golden Rams improved to 22-9, 7-1 in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) East. Millersville gave up nine hits to West Chester in both games. The Marauders had a total of 15 hits on the day.

Sophomore Rebecca Blatt combined to go 1.000 on the day. Blatt went 4 for 4 in game one with a double and 2 for 2 in the second game. Blatt improved her batting average to .379 and a slugging percentage of .770. Freshman Faith Willenbrock ended her 12 game hitting streak today.

GAME 1
Three of West Chester's four runs came on home runs. The pivotal inning for West Chester was in the bottom of the fourth inning when Emily Maseth and Madison Kelly hit back-to-back home runs to left field to extend the West Chester lead to 3-0.

Sara Ercolani tripled to left center field in the bottom of the sixth to push West Chester's lead to 4-1. In the next half inning, pitcher Amanda Houck closed the game out to claim the victory. Millersville's lone run came in the sixth when freshman Devan Mascuilli singled to shortstop to score sophomore Ally Kerr. 

In the top of the second, the Marauders had a scoring opportunity but could not respond in the clutch. Senior Kaelyn Buskey doubled to left field. Then, senior Megan McCurdy singled to right field to advance Buskey to third. With runners on third and first, Houck grounded out Mascuilli and then struck out two batters to end the inning.

Rebecca Blatt went 4 for 4 with a double and three singles. 

Houck got her 14th win by striking out 10 Marauders. Millersville pitcher Catherine Johnson took the loss after after allowing five hits in 3 1/3 innings. After the third home run, Bevard came into relief and gave up four hits, one run in 2 2/3 innings.

GAME 2
In the bottom of the fifth, down by one, West Chester scored nine runs in the inning and went on to win, 10-2. Millersville used three pitchers in the inning, and a two-run double end the game by eight-run rule. 

Millersville took the lead not long before. Mascuilli doubled to left center to start the top of the fifth inning. Junior Morgan Almodovar doubled to center field to score Mascuilli, putting Millersville ahead, 2-1. In the bottom of the fourth inning, Buskey tied the game up at 1-1 with a single to left field that led Blatt to score.

Two Marauders went 2 for 2 in the game and scored one run each. Blatt had a hit and walked. Mascuilli had an RBI double and a single.

UP NEXT
The Marauders return to Seaber Softball Stadium for three-straight home games starting on Friday, April 13 against PSAC East foe Shippensburg. First pitch is at 2:30 p.m.