LORETTO, PA- Saint Francis honored the five members of the 2019 senior class in a pre-game ceremony but Sacred Heart won a pair of tightly contested games on Saturday, taking game one 3-1 in extra innings and game two, 4-2 at the Red Flash Softball Complex. 

MeKenzie Saban (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Hills) led the offense in both ends of the double header, recording three hits in each game and going 6-for-9 in total.  In the circle, freshman Christina Clark (Avon, Ohio/Avon High School) threw nine innings across the two games, limiting Sacred Heart to just one run on six hits. 

GAME ONE RECAP
The pitcher's duel showed itself early on in game one Saturday, with both Emily Orosco and Christina Clark (Avon, Ohio/Avon High School) limiting scoring opportunities. Each team would get runners to second but no further, as neither team truly threatened to score in the first two innings. The Red Flash broke through in the third inning, as Hayley Norton's (Spring Grove, Pa./Spring Grove) single brought home MeKenzie Saban (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Hills), who doubled to start the inning. Clark continued to deal for the Red Flash, holding Sacred Heart off the scoreboard until the fifth inning. The Pioneers broke through to tie the game as a pair of singles and a fielder's choice put runners on second and third for SHU. Stephanie Mangiamelli lined out to left field, allowing the runner on third to come into score and tie the game. Neither team would put together a scoring threat until the eighth inning. In the extra frame, a Saban single, Norton double and Sierra McKee (DuBois, Pa./DuBois) walk loaded the bases with only one out. However, a popout and flyout ended the threat. Sacred Heart pushed across two runs in the ninth and that proved to be the difference. Back-to-back doubles led off the inning and scored the second Pioneer run, an insurance run crossed on a sacrifice fly to give SHU a 3-1 lead. Again, the Red Flash threatened in their half, using two singles and a hit batter to load the bases with one out. Again, a popout and flyout ended the inning and Sacred Heart grabbed game one, 3-1 in nine innings. 

GAME ONE SCORING
 B3 | MeKenzie Saban (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Hills) doubled to left field, Hayley Norton (Spring Grove, Pa./Spring Grove) singled to right, advanced to second on an error by the pitcher, Saban scored. 1-0 SFU
T5 | Spitz singled to left, Landry pinch ran for Spitz, Kruger singled to center, Landry to second, Desrosiers grounded into fielder's choice, Landry to third, Kruger out ss to 2b, Mangiamelli hit sac fly to left field, Landry scored, 1-1
T9 | Bevino doubled to right, Petrovich doubled to right, Bevino scored, Harvey grounded out to pitcher, Petrovich to third, Santos hit sac fly to center, Petrovich scored...3-1 SHU


GAME TWO RECAP 
Mikayla Bower (Williamsport, Pa./Williamsport) took the ball in game two for the Red Flash kept the Pioneers off the scoreboard in the first inning, getting a popout and flyout to get out of jam. Saint Francis loaded the bases in the bottom of the inning with two out, but a grounder to short ended the inning. Sacred Heart scored first, getting a run in the second thanks to a double and timely two out single by Hailey Desrosiers. The Pioneers would add their second run in the third as Katelyn Christian snuck one over the left field wall for her sixth home run of the season, a solo shot that made it 2-0. Saint Francis would get two runners on in both the third and the fourth against Kristin McCann, but could not score. Meadow Uncapher (Mount Pleasant, Pa./Mount Pleasant High School) relieved Bower in the fourth and after a quiet fourth inning, Sacred Heart added insurance runs in the fifth. After a walk and a single, pinch runner Hannah Errico was ruled safe at third on a bang-bang force play to load the bases. The Pioneers would score their third run after Sierra McKee's (DuBois, Pa./DuBois) throw on a double play opportunity, skipped off Brittney Crawford's (Canonsburg, Pa./Canon McMillan) glove, allowing Fallon Bevino to score and added a fourth off a single to right. Saint Francis would answer back in the sixth, using three singles to load the bases. Kassidy Troxell (Navarre, Ohio/Perry) brought home a run on a RBI ground out and Crawford followed suit with a sac fly.  The Red Flash went down fighting in the seventh, putting two on and bringing the winning run to the plate, but couldn't push across a run. 

GAME TWO SCORING
T2| Harvey doubled to right, Spitz reached on a throwing error by ss, Harvey to third, Desrosiers singled down left field line, Harvey scored...1-0 SHU
T3| Christian homered to left...2-0SHU
T5 |Christian walked (Errico pinch ran for Christian), Bevino singled to short, Errico to second, Petrovich reached on fielder's choice, Bevino to second, Errico safe on fielding error by 3b, Harvey reached on fielder's choice, Errico out p to c, Bevino scored, Petrovich to third on throwing error by c, Gonzalez singled to right, Petrovich scored, 4-0 SHU
B6| S McKee singled to left, Frank singled to left, S McKee to second, Bower singled to p, S McKee to third, Frank to second, Troxell grounded out to 2b, S McKee score, Frank to third, Bower to second, Crawford hit sac fly to ss, Frank scored...4-2 SHU

The losses move Saint Francis to 18-26 on the season and 5-5 in NEC play, Sacred Heart evens their record at 21-21 and is now 6-4 in the NEC. The Red Flash are back in action tomorrow as they host Wagner for a double header. First pitch from Loretto is set for noon.