Julia Mooney drove in five runs and
Sara Solberg added four RBI on the day for Pitt-Johnstown, but Slippery Rock took the opener, 5-1, before winning an, 18-14, slugfest in the nightcap to begin PSAC West-play, Friday afternoon at the Pitt-Johnstown Softball Field. The Mountain Cats slipped to 3-13 overall and 0-2 in the conference.
In game one, the Mountain Cats opened the scoring with a run in the bottom of the fourth. Singles by
Mia Smith and
Hannah Gnibus put runners on first and second with one out and
Brynnae Coe followed with a base hit to right field that allowed Smith to score.
Slippery Rock answered with five runs in the top of the seventh. The Rock loaded the bases with nobody out and starting pitcher Alexa Hurd helped her own cause and blasted a grand slam to left to make it 4-1. Julia Nutter's RBI double later in the inning put the Rock on top 5-1.
Pitt-Johnstown put a runner on second with one out in the bottom of the seventh, but Hurd was able to work out of it to and lock up the complete-game victory.
Gianna Surra was 2-for-32 with a double, and Coe had a hit and an RBI for Pitt-Johnstown. The Mountain Cats also got hits from
Audrey Paterson and Smith.
Smith fell to 2-6 after surrendering five runs (4 earned) on nine hits in seven innings. She struck out five and walked three.
Along with the grand slam, Hurd held the Mountain Cats to one run on five hits to improve to 5-3. Hurd fanned 12 and walked four.
In game two, Slippery Rock loaded the bases in the top of the first and Julia Nutter belted a grand slam off Mountain Cat starter
Mahlon Yonkin.
After an infield single from
Meghan McDonough and a walk to Surra to start the Pitt-Johnstown half of the first, Mooney delivered a two-run double to the gap in left-center to cut the deficit in half, before the Mountain Cats took the lead with five in the third, including another two-run double from Mooney doubled home McDonough and an RBI double from smith.
The Rock narrowed it to 7-6 with two unearned runs in the top of the fourth, the regained the lead, 10-7, with four more in fifth.
Krista Brunson doubled home
Hannah Gnibus, led off the bottom of the fifth with a double, to get a run back for Pitt-Johnstown, but Nutter's two-run homer and Shaylyn Shall's three-run double in the Slippery Rock sixth pushed it out to 16-8.
The Mountain Cats came right back with six runs of their own in the bottom of the sixth, highlighted by Solberg's three-run double to make it 16-14, but Jessica Goldhardt connected for a two-run homer in the top if the seventh and Hurd tossed a scoreless bottom half of the seventh to preserve The Rock's win.
Mooney went 2-for-5 with two doubles and five RBI, and Soldberg drove in four for the Mountain Cats. Brunson had two hits and a pair of RBI, Coe had two hits and an RBI, and McDonough accounted for two of Pitt-Johnstown's 13 hits.
Yonkin took the loss and fell to 1-6. Yonkin allowed 11 runs (7n earned) in 5.2 innings.
Nutter went 3-for-5 with two homers and six RBI, Hurd went 5-for-6 with three RBI, and Shall homered and drove in four for the Rock, now 8-12 overall and 2-0 in the PSAC West.
The Mountain Cats will host PSAC West doubleheaders against Gannon on Sunday at 1 p.m. and California (PA) on Tuesday 2 p.m. at the Pitt-Johnstown Softball Field.
