Cornell’s softball team came up short in its final two spring break games Wednesday in the Sunshine State.
The young Rams fell 7-1 to Misericordia and dropped an 8-2 decision to 2021 NCAA regional qualifier York (Pa.) College.
Junior left-hander Alyssa Pearson pitched a complete game against Misericordia (3-2), which gained control early with a 6-1 lead through three innings. Pearson struck out four and allowed eight hits.
The Rams’ lineup totaled six hits, including an RBI single from Caitlin Babcock that scored MacKenzie Macam in the second.
Cornell hung tight in the second game with York (2-2), trailing 3-2 after freshman Katie Fertig came around to score on a throwing error in the bottom of the fourth. York pulled away with two runs in the fifth and three more in the seventh.
The Rams tallied six singles in the contest. Olivia Richards bunted home a run in the second.
Freshman Eva Stewart fired 4.2 innings in a starting role. She gave up five runs – three earned – and struck out two.
Earlier in the week, The Rams had 11 different players record a hit in Tuesday’s softball losses to Nebraska Wesleyan, 9-8 in eight innings, and Lakeland, 11-4.
Cornell was on the brink of victory in a battle with Nebraska Wesleyan (7-2), taking an 8-3 lead into the bottom of the seventh inning. The Prairie Wolves rallied for five runs in the seventh and won it with a one-out infield grounder in the eighth, handing Cornell its second extra-inning loss of the spring break trip.
Cornell left nine total runners on base, including the bases loaded in the top of the seventh with a missed opportunity to add key insurance runs.
The Rams had 10 hits in the contest, including a 2-for-4 effort from Erin Puck. Addie Bowman and Julissa Rivera each scored two runs at the top of the lineup. Claire Gugerty was 1-for-3 with two RBIs.
Sydni Coleman, Zoie Harvey and Caitlin Babcock added one RBI apiece for the Rams, who led 5-1 through 4 1/2 innings.
Alyssa Pearson went the distance in the pitching circle.
In Game 2, Lakeland (3-1) struck for five runs in its first at-bat and outhit the Rams, 12-6.
Cornell scored all four of its runs in the third inning, keyed by a two-RBI single from Coleman. Gugerty delivered a sacrifice fly and Eva Stewart an RBI single in the frame.
Stewart pitched the final 4 1/3 innings in relief, allowing five hits and three runs.
The Rams have a two-week break from competition before facing American Rivers Conference preseason favorite Coe March 23 at 2 p.m. in Cedar Rapids. Game one will count toward the Bremner Cup All-Sport Series, which Coe leads 6-5.