WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – After dropping the opener, the Triton bats erupted for seven runs in the finale to take the series from Palm Beach Atlantic as the Eckerd softball team split its doubleheader, 7-3 and 7-2, Saturday afternoon at Simpson Field.
The Sailfish pressured early in game one, plating two runs in the first inning. Eckerd answered in the third and put two runners on base via a Brenna Lokeinsky single down the left field line, and Jenice Casanas reached on a catcher's interference. A defensive miscue in centerfield on Skylar Redish's fly ball scored Casanas and Lokeinsky to tie the game, 2-2.
PBA added two runs in the fourth inning on a pair of extra-base hits to regain the lead, 4-2. The Tritons trimmed the Sailfish lead to 4-3 in the sixth inning when a fielding error by PBA's Evoni Rodriguez sent Skylar Redish home. The Sailfish added three runs in the sixth inning, and the Tritons were unable to add to their total in the seventh as Palm Beach Atlantic took the win, 7-3.
The Tritons flipped the script in game two, tacking on two runs to begin the first with three singles from Lauren Margolis, Hannah Burge, and Lokeinsky. Redish also drew a bases-loaded walk to give the Tritons an early edge, 2-0. Eckerd's offense exploded in the third inning, pushing five runs home to take a 7-0 lead that they would never relinquish. Brooklyn Cardona, Megan Diaz, and Lokeinsky picked up RBIs in the frame with two singles and a triple, respectively.
The Sailfish plated a run in the third and seventh innings, but Hannah Perkins and the Triton defense sealed game two, 7-2.
HOW IT ENDED
Game 1
Final: Palm Beach Atlantic 7, Eckerd 3
WP: Marty (1-0) LP: Durrance (2-3)
Game 2
Final: Eckerd 7, Palm Beach Atlantic 2
WP: Perkins (4-3) LP: Nepveux (1-2) HR: Watterson (1)
Records: Eckerd 6-6 (2-4 SSC), Palm Beach Atlantic 5-5 (4-2 SSC)
NOTES AND NUMBERS
- Lokeinsky had a day at the dish, going 4-for-9 overall with two RBIs and two runs scored.
- Cardona went 2-for-3 with two RBIs, a walk, and a run scored in the finale.
- Diaz also scattered two hits and two RBIs in the second showing.
- Kensley Durrance pitched 5.1 innings in game one, allowing nine hits and striking out two.
- Perkins picked up her fourth win of the season and third of the week, pitching a complete game. She scattered seven hits.
- Casanas and Lokeinsky each recorded extra-base hits on the day with a double and a triple, respectively.
QUOTABLE
"I'm proud of our team's fight and grit on a tough week," said head coach
Katie Profitt. "I know they have strong determination and chemistry to compete for one another."
UP NEXT
The Tritons return home for a three-game series against Florida Tech, with game one slated for next Friday at 6:00 PM.
