CLEARWATER, FLA- Saint Francis was on the wrong side of their first two games in Florida, falling to Villanova 7-0 and South Dakota State 7-2.
The games are a part of the South Florida and Clearwater Parks and Rec showcase.
GAME ONE RECAP
The Wildcats jumped on the board early against
Mikayla Bower (Williamsport, Pa./Williamsport) using a pair of singles and a walk to score twice in their first at-bat and take a 2-0 lead. Saint Francis wasn't able to do much in their first inning, getting a lead-off walk and nothing more. Bower would settle in, striking out a pair in the second inning and retired the side in order. SFU would get a trio of singles to load the bases in the second, but couldn't capitalize.
Villanova would extend the lead to 3-0, using a pair of singles and a sacrifice fly to push across their third run. After SFU went quietly in the third, the Wildcats broke the game open in the fourth. An error, triple and single scored two more runs and ended Bower's day on the mound.
Christina Clark (Avon, Ohio/Avon High School) came in and another single and a double brought in Villanova's sixth and seventh runs of the game. The freshman would settle in and get a pair of strikeouts to end the inning. The Red Flash offense would manage a single in each of the next two innings but nothing more. Clark get Villanova off the scoreboard, working around an error and two singles thanks in part to a caught stealing. SFU's best chance to score in the later innings came in the sixth as
Sierra McKee (DuBois, Pa./DuBois) singled and stole second and advanced to third on a
Kassidy Troxell (Navarre, Ohio/Perry) single. With two on and two out, a strikeout ended the inning and the Red Flash didn't threaten to score in the seventh.
GAME TWO RECAP
Saint Francis had a quick turnaround after the Wildcats' game, taking on the South Dakota State Jackrabbits in game two on Friday.
MeKenzie Saban (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Hills) singled to start off the game and scored the game's first run thanks to her smart base running. Saban tagged on
Cheyenne McKee's (DuBois, Pa./DuBois) fly ball to left and scored after the left fielder's throw got by the second baseman and went into right field. After closing out game one,
Christina Clark (Avon, Ohio/Avon High School) got the ball to start game two. The Jackrabbits used small ball against the freshmen, using a walk, steal and single to tie the game at one in the first.
Both teams would get a pair of runners on in the second inning but neither team would score. SDSU would break the tie in the third, using a trio of singles to plate their second run of the game. The lead would not last long, the Red Flash got two walks and an infield single to load the bases. After Troxell forced Bower at home on a ground ball,
Jordan Frank (DuBois, Pa./DuBois Central Catholic) brought in a run after she was hit by a pitch but that is all the damage they could do.
The 'Jacks would go ahead for good in their half of the fourth. Julia Andersen hit a 1-2, two-out pitch over the right-field wall for a two-run home run. Both Cheyenne and
Sierra McKee (DuBois, Pa./DuBois) would walk in the fifth but were stranded, it'd be the last time the Red Flash had two runners on base in an inning.
Meadow Uncapher (Mount Pleasant, Pa./Mount Pleasant High School) relieved Clark in the sixth and SDSU scratched across another pair of runs after a single, steal, error and double made it 6-2 after five. The 'Jacks added another insurance run off a solo home run in the sixth, closing out the scoring.
The setbacks move the Red Flash to 8-12 on the season while Villanova improved to 8-9 and South Dakota State moved to 15-4. SFU is back at it tomorrow with two more in Florida. Saint Francis takes on Providence at noon and Western Michigan at 5 p.m.
