MELBOURNE, Fla. – A 6-4 come-from-behind victory for Felician University in the first game of Post University Softball's Florida doubleheader was quickly shaken off by the Eagles who scored three first-inning runs in game two while holding off a late comeback by the Golden Falcons to earn the split and their first win of the season, 8-7, on Monday afternoon.
THE BASICS
Post University 4, Felician University 6
Post University 8, Felician University 7
Post University (1-5)
Felician University (4-12)
HOW IT HAPPENED
Game 1: Post University 4, Felician University 6
Both sides would exchange a run in the first inning as sophomore outfielder Hannah Ramirez's RBI single gave the Golden Falcons the early lead before senior right-hander
Jenny Riquelme's RBI groundout with two outs, knotted things up at one all. Sophomore infielder Kathryn Steinmetz gave her team the lead in the third with her RBI single on an inning-ending play at third with senior second baseman Alexis Velotta, limiting the damage against Riquelme to one.
At that point, the Eagles would score three unanswered runs when the Dickenson sisters went to work at the plate. Junior infielder
Brooke Dickenson's RBI single off sophomore pitcher Riley Williams tied the game back up at two and two batters later junior infielder
Bailey Dickenson gave Post the lead back with her two-run pinch-hit single with the bases loaded, 4-2.
The lead would be short-lived though, as RBI singles from Velotta and junior infielder Victorie Leon saw Felician pull even for the second time in the game while Williams mowed down the Post offense for the final three innings. The Eagles managed just two baserunners between the fifth and seventh innings, unable to reclaim the lead while a Steinmetz's fielder's choice and RBI double from Leon helped the Golden Falcons capture game one, 6-4.
Riquelme finished the game having allowed six runs on 13 hits with two strikeouts across all seven innings in her second loss of the season while Williams got her third win of the year after going all seven innings in which she allowed four runs on six hits with eight strikeouts and two walks.
Game 2: Post University 8, Felician University 7
The Eagles got right to work offensively against junior pitcher Kylie Sharapan in the first inning, striking for three runs on one hit. Three walks in four batters to start the game would be the trigger as senior catcher
Julianna Cicala drove in two runs with her RBI double and then
Bailey Dickenson's ground out scored Riquelme to make it a 3-0 ballgame.
Junior right-handed pitcher
Alyssa Hughes made her first start of the season and issued a leadoff walk to graduate outfielder Jenna O'Reilly who came around to score the Golden Falcon's first run on a sacrifice fly by Leon in the bottom half of the frame. That would be the start of three unanswered runs to tie the game at three when a two-run double in the third by freshman infielder Layla Albarran off Hughes made it a brand-new ballgame.
However, the Eagle offense made the most of their opportunities and responded with five unanswered runs over the next three frames, opening up an 8-3 lead over the Golden Falcons. Two singles and a fielder's choice loaded up the bases with two outs for Cicala's two-run single in the fourth off sophomore reliever Mikayla Brown who helped Post scratch across two more runs in the fifth by hitting two batters.
Graduate outfielder
Samantha Riccardulli's sixth-inning RBI single seemed to give the Eagles full control of the affair, but a seventh-inning blitz would threaten that. Five hits and an error suddenly turned a five-run lead into just a one-run lead for Post after a two-run double by Brown and RBI singles by freshman shortstop Sadie Kittoe and freshman utility player Sara Torres with only one out.
Hughes would come back to get the next two batters to pop up to sophomore catcher
Brianna Hynds behind the plate to secure Post's first victory of the season, 8-7.
BY THE NUMBERS
- Caitlin DeAngelis has reached base safely in all six games so far this season for Post University – DeAngelis went 1-for-4 in game one with a single and run scored before a 1-for-3 performance in game two in which she singled, walked, scored once, was hit by a pitch, and scored a run
- Picking up the game two victory, that was Alyssa Hughes' first win in seven appearances with her last one coming against Saint Rose on April 14th, 2023
- For the first time this season, every player reached base for Post University in game two of the doubleheader either via hit, walk, hit by pitch, or error
- The game two in over Felician snapped a three-game losing streak in the all-time series for Post University against the Golden Falcons – In each of the last four losses the Eagles have had against Felician, they have allowed exactly six runs in the affairs
WHO'S NEXT
Post University has a doubleheader of games slated for Tuesday, facing off against Molloy University at 10:00 AM before facing West Chester University at 2:30 PM. Against the Lions, this is the first matchup since 2007 in which they were swept at home while this is the second time in three years in which Post will take on the Golden Rams who they are 1-3 against all-time and lost their last matchup in 2022, 5-2.
