Drexel University Athletics
Drexel University
Bucknell
Dragons Snap Skid With Split at Bucknell
3/25/2009 8:09:32 PM | Softball
Lewisburg, Pa. – Drexel (12-10) snapped its three game skid with a 9-3 victory in game two against the Bison (9-14). Sophomore Kelly Downes blasted her first career homer, a two-run shot in a five-run fourth inning for the Dragons. Drexel lost game one 5-3. Ashley Botelho drove in two of Drexel's three runs and hit her team-leading fourth homer of the season.
Game One Box: Pdfs/softball/2009/3/25/NCAA Box Score - BUSB21.pdfThe Bison put three on the board in the second and two more in the third to build a 5-0 lead. Drexel answered with two of its own in the bottom of the second when Botelho's blast followed a double by Kristen Beaver to make it a 5-2 game.
Hillary Allen drove home pinch-runner Elena Fravel in the sixth inning with a single to center to make it 5-3. The Dragons could have continued to cut into the lead when Rachel Campbell and Devon Metcalf followed Allen's knock with singles of their own to load the bases with two outs. But Beaver hit a grounder up the middle that went for a force out at second base to end the inning.
Neither team would score again in the game as the Dragons fell for the third time in as many contests. Ellen Boundy started the game and pitched one scoreless inning before being pulled in favor of Amanda Shattuck who allowed all five runs, three of them earned, on seven his and a walk over the next five innings. She dropped to 0-1 on the season with the loss.
Game Two Box: Pdfs/softball/2009/3/25/NCAA Box Score - BUSB22.pdfKaty Harrington, the Dragons' lone bright spot offensively in Tuesday's loss to Saint Joseph's, continued her solid performance from the plate, going 2-for-4 with two RBIs. Hillary Allen bounced back from three straight losses with a strong performance on the mound and she backed it up with a pair of hits and two runs scored the Drexel victory.
Botelho, followed her strong performance in game one with another two-hit, two-RBI game in the nightcap. Sandi Wambold also posted a multi-hit game and Devon Metcalf drove in two runs in the win.
Drexel used a five-run fourth inning to put away the Bison. Kelly Downes got it started with a two-run homer, the first of her career, following a lead-off single by Hillary Allen. A bases-loaded walk by Paige Collings gave Drexel its third run of the inning before Ashley Botelho drove a two-RBI single into centerfield to give Drexel a 7-2 lead in the game.
Harrington staked Drexel to an early 2-0 lead in the second inning with a two-RBI single with Allen and Sandi Wambold in scoring position. Bucknell answered with two runs in the bottom of the frame on a lead-off single, followed by an RBI triple and a sacrifice fly before Drexel starter Hillary Allen found her groove.
Devon Metcalf built Drexel's lead to 9-3 when she doubled home Harrington and pinch runner Elena Fravel in the top of the sixth inning. Allen pitched the entire game and allowed two earned runs on six hits and a walk while striking out three. She improved to 3-5 with the win.
The Dragons return to CAA play with a three-game set at UNC Wilmington this weekend.
