Game One Box Score
Game Two Box Score

LORETTO, Pa. (April 2, 2012) – Struggling to get the bats going Monday afternoon, the Saint Francis University softball team dropped a pair of Northeast Conference games against Fairleigh Dickinson at Red Flash Field by the finals of 9-3 and 3-2.

The Knights improved their overall record to 19-6 and their conference leading mark to 5-1 with two wins today. In the opening game, FDU struck early with three runs in the first inning off of a two-run shot by Caitlin Bradac and a sacrifice fly. SFU (14-14, 4-4 NEC) held the Knights scoreless until they tacked on two more runs in the top of inning four.

In the bottom of the fifth, Saint Francis set up with a chance to put a few runs across the board. Taylor Darneille (Fircrest, Wash./Wilson) led off the inning by reaching on an error by the second baseman and was moved over to second on SFU's first hit of the day, a single by Kaitlin Andler (Evanston, Ill./Evanston). After Chelsy Cosentino (New Kensington, Pa./Kiski Area) drew a one-out walk that loaded the bases, the Red Flash then recorded two consecutive outs to end the inning and stop its threat.

FDU tacked on one more in the sixth off of a solo homerun from Kirsten Shreve and added three final runs in the final inning to take a 9-0 lead at that point. SFU would go down swinging though as they found ways to stop the shutout and pick up three runs in its final at-bat. Megan Layne (Vallejo, Calif./Rodriguez), in her first at-bat of the day, drew a pinch-hit two-out bases loaded walk to give Saint Francis its first run. The Flash earned its next two runs off of an error by FDU's first baseman that scored two runs. Unfortunately for Saint Francis however, a fly out to left field ended the rally and the first game and gave Fairleigh Dickinson the 9-3 victory.

Brooke Koch (Jersey Shore, Pa./Jersey Shore) suffered her second loss of the season, pulling her record to 6-2 on the year after giving up seven earned runs on 11 hits. The Red Flash picked up just two hits in the first game.

Game two of the doubleheader got off to a similar start compared to game one as Bradac smacked her second long ball of the day, this time over the left center field fence to put FDU up 2-0 after the first inning. The Flash held the Knights to those two runs up until the top of the sixth when Fairleigh Dickinson's Bryana Dorado singled up the middle to drive in one run.

It wasn't until the bottom of the sixth that the Flash collected its first hit of the game to break up Bradac's no-hitter as Davina Kachnovitz doubled to left field. Saint Francis came down to its final inning of offense and mounted a charge at the win after a Darneille walk allowed freshman Chelsea Rex to belt her second homerun of the season down the left field line. That made the score 3-2 Knights and that is where it finished.

Rex took the loss in the circle, dropping her pitching record to 4-6 after tossing all seven innings and surrendering three earned runs on 10 hits. SFU recorded just two hits in the second game, giving them four between the two games.

Saint Francis is in action again tomorrow afternoon with a 3 p.m. non-conference doubleheader at Youngstown State.