(Carlisle, Pa.) – The Dickinson softball team suffered a pair of tough losses to visiting Franklin & Marshall on Saturday, falling 3-1 and 1-0 at Dickinson Park.
First-year Emily Rosenberg (Fredericksburg, Va./Massaponax) kept the Diplomats in check for most of the game, recording nine strikeouts in the opener.
Junior Casey Ditzler (Cleona, Pa./Annville-Cleona) put Dickinson on the board first, leading off with a double in the fourth and coming in to score on an RBI single by Nicole Clayton (Chadds Ford, Pa./Garnet Valley).
F&M answered in the top of the fifth as Karly Newcomb led-off with a double and scored on a single from Crystal Good to pull the Diplomats even.
Samantha Burns hit a solo homerun to open the sixth inning and Megan Ryan singled and scored to make the score, 3-1. The Red Devils had runners in scoring position in both the sixth and seventh innings but were unable to produce another run.
A defensive battle in game two led to a 1-0 win for the Diplomats. F&M had runners on second and third in the top of the first, but Clayton was able to work out of the jam. The Diplomats tallied the lone run in the fourth inning. Ryan singled and stole second, setting up an RBI double for Newcomb.
Solid defense and some timely strikeouts on both sides kept the score that way for the remainder of the game. Each team had two runners in scoring position in the final three innings. Lindsey Zwecker (Atlanta, Ga./Pace Academy) led-off the seventh with a single and Michelle Orden (Hillsdale, N.J./Pascack Valley) came on to pinch-run and stole second.
Isabel Schaefer was able to close the door to earn her second win of the day in the circle.
Ditzler went 2-for-3 in game two to lead the way for the Red Devils. They slip to 15-16 overall and 4-12 in the Centennial Conference. They travel to Susquehanna on Tuesday for a 3:00 pm start.
The Red Devils honored their three seniors between games, recognizing Jay Abell (Glenn Dale, Md./Elizabeth Seton), Becca Garlinger (Enola, Pa./East Pennsboro) and Katie Swade (New Freedom, Pa./Susquehannock) for their contributions to the Red Devil softball program.
