Softball Snaps Losing Skid, Sweeps Rival Penn

Wednesday, April 22

Drexel Field

3:00 p.m.

Drexel University

Penn

Rodriguez ended game one with an assist from left field on a play at home

Softball Snaps Losing Skid, Sweeps Rival Penn

4/22/2009 5:11:25 PM | Softball

Philadelphia – Drexel pulled out a doubleheader sweep of its rival the Penn Quakers before showers descended on Drexel Field to end a rain shortened nightcap. Drexel won an exciting 6-5 game in the opener to snap a five-game losing streak. The game ended on an outfield assist from Christina Rodriguez on a play at the plate. In game two the Dragons put up five runs in the first inning and held off a pair of Penn rallies before heavy rain showers ended the game in the top of the sixth inning. Sandi Wambold cracked her team-leading sixth home run of the season in game one and Paige Collings when 3-for-3 with a three-run homer in the nightcap to complete the sweep in a rain-shortened game two.

Game One

With two outs, runners on first and second and Penn (12-27-1) rallying with Drexel (22-16) on top 6-5 in the top of the seventh inning, number eight hitter Bridget McDugall drove a single into short leftfield. Senior Christina Rodriguez picked up the hit and fired a one-bounce strike to catcher Paige Collings that arrived just before a charging Kelsey Wolfe. Collings held onto the ball despite the collision at the plate to give Drexel an exciting victory in game one of Wednesday's doubleheader.

Senior Sandi Wambold went 2-for-3 in the game with three RBIs and her team-leading sixth home run. Rookie Hillary Allen earned her 10th pitching victory of the season after scattering 12 Penn hits and a walk through seven innings of work. Rookie Devon Metcalf hit her first career homer for the Dragons to set up a five-run Drexel third. Kelsey Wolfe and Bridget McDugall both went 3-for-4 for the Quakers.

Sarah Patrick struck first for Penn in the top of the first. The second batter of the game took a Hillary Allen fastball over the leftfield fence to give the Quakers 1-0 lead.

Wambold squared things for the Dragons with a towering shot to left center, her team-leading sixth of the season. The Dragons appeared poised to tack on an additional run when Paige Collings followed with a single lined to right field. But the bottom of the lineup had difficulty getting down a sacrifice bunt to move pinch runner Elena Fravel along.

Drexel knocked starter Cailyn Hennessy out of the game with a five-run third inning. Devon Metcalf opened scoring with a solo shot to left field, the first of her career. Lisa Williams knocked a single up the middle of the infield and Ashley Botelho followed it with a screaming liner to right center. A grounder by Christina Rodriguez plated Williams from third and Rodriguez cleverly advanced to second on the throw home. This proved to be a big play when Sandi Wambold looped a single into right field that was not cut off by Diana Ark and rolled to the wall. Both runners scored to make it a 5-1 Drexel lead. Paige Collings knocked in one more run before Jessie Lupardus relieved Hennessy and recorded the final two outs of the inning with Drexel on top 6-1.

Penn answered in the top of the fourth when the first batters of the inning Jamie Boccanfuso and Kelsey Wolfe hit the first two offerings from Allen into right centerfield for a single and a double, respectively. The Quakers loaded the bases with no outs for Taylor Tieman who hit a sacrifice fly to center making it a 6-2 game. Penn used an infield single by Bridget McDugall to load the sacks again with Diana Ark at the plate.. Ark hit a fly ball to right field that was caught by Rachel Campbell. Campbell fired the ball in to Botelho at first base in an attempt to double off the runner for the final out. Botelho caught the ball but it was ruled that her foot was off the base. In the meantime, Wolfe trotted home from third base to make it a 6-3 game. Lead-off hitter Keiko Uraguchi drove home Penn's third run of the inning with a single before Allen got an inning-ending ground out to first base to end the inning with Drexel clinging to a 6-4 lead.

Ark found herself in the middle of another Penn rally in the sixth inning when she hit a one-out double over the head of Rodriguez in left field. A quick backup by Williams saved a run. With runners on second and third Rodriguez redeemed herself by sprinting in to make a basket catch on a ball popped behind third base into short left. Uraguchi popped out to third base to end the inning without a Quaker crossing the plate.

Refusing to go down without a fight, Penn led off the seventh with a double by Alisha Prystowsky to the wall in left field. Boccanfuso moved her over to second with a groundout to shortstop and a single by Kelsey Wolfe brought her home to make it a 6-5 game. Meg Krasne followed with a knock of her own giving the Quakers runners on first and second with one out. After a conference on the mound, Allen settled herself to get a big strikeout of Taylor Tieman for the second out of the inning setting up a thrilling conclusion on Rodriguez's outfield assist.

Game Two

Rookie Paige Collings went 3-for-3 with a three-run homer in Drexel's five-run first inning. Starter Amanda Shattuck made the lead hold up despite two rallies by the Quakers and the Dragons close out their sweep of Penn in the sixth inning when heavy rain and hail showers caused the game to be called early.

Drexel wasted no time in the nightcap, lighting up starter Chelsea Ott for five runs in the first inning punctuated by a three-run blast off the bat of Paige Collings. Devon Metcalf and Ashley Botelho set the tone with a pair of line drives that made it to the outfield wall. Botelho's shot, a long single, plated Metcalf who led off the game with a double. A walk to Caprice DeMirjian with two outs loaded the bases for Metcalf's second at bat of the inning. This time the rookie third baseman hit a check-swing grounder to the shortstop Jamie Boccanfuso who fielded it cleanly but was indecisive in making a throw, allowing a run to score and Metcalf to reach first safely.

A throwing error by Rodriguez, whose arm in left field closed out game one for the Dragons, allowed Penn to score its first run in the third inning. The Quakers stole a second run in the inning when, with runners on first and third, Jamie Boccanfuso broke for second, Alisha Prystowski ran home when catcher Paige Collings threw to second in an attempts to catch Boccanfuso stealing to make it a 5-2 game.

Penn knocked another chip out of Drexel's first-inning led on an RBI groundout by Meg Krasne in the fourth inning, making it a 5-3 Drexel lead.

Heavy rain and hail showers descended on Drexel Field in the top of the sixth forcing the game to be called. Shattuck improved to 2-2 on the season after allowing one earned run on five hits and five walks, she also struckout two Quakers. Chelsey Ott took the loss for Penn after letting in four earned runs through three innings of work.