Game 1 Box Score Game 2 Box Score
ANNVILLE, Pa. – The Lebanon Valley College softball team lost both ends of a MAC non-conference doubleheader to King's College on Tuesday afternoon at the LVC Softball Park.
King's (33-7) won 4-2 win in the opener, then scored a 6-2 victory in the nightcap to pick up the sweep.
Freshman Amy Batz (Lebanon, Pa./Cedar Crest) had an outstanding doubleheader for Lebanon Valley (13-18), going 5-for-7 over the two games.
In the first game, the Monarchs jumped to the early lead against LVC starter Jenn Roberts (East Petersburg, Pa./Hempfield). King's scored three times on three hits in the top of the first, highlighted by a two-out, two-run double by freshman Mari Valonis.
The Flying Dutchmen cut it 3-1 in the fourth when Roberts smacked her first collegiate home run, a solo shot to left to lead off the inning. The Valley made it 3-2 when junior Melissa Ulrich (Reinholds, Pa./Cocalico) doubled in a run in the sixth.
King's added an insurance run in the top of the seventh, then held off a Dutchmen rally in the bottom of the frame. LVC had runners on second and third with no outs after freshman Audrey Benner (Leola, Pa./Conestoga Valley) led off with a single up the middle and senior Kristin Crouse (Columbia, Pa./Columbia) doubled to right-center. After picking up one out, King's starter Sarah Genewski left the game in favor of Nikki Kotula, and Kotula retired the final two batters of the game to earn her third save of the season.
Batz went 3-for-4 in Game One. Roberts (5-9) threw four innings, and gave up three runs on four hits and one walk while striking out four. Sophomore Alisa Albers (Harrisburg, Pa./Central Dauphin) hurled the final three innings and limited the Monarchs to one unearned run on five hits and no walks. She struck out one.
Genewski (15-4) scattered 10 hits while yielding two runs. She walked one and struck out two.
LVC jumped to a 1-0 lead in the nightcap on an RBI-groundout by freshman Jenn Parks (Monroeville, N.J./Woodstown) in the bottom of the first. But King's seized the lead for good after scoring four runs over the second and third innings.
The Dutchmen cut it to 4-2 in the third following an RBI-double from Batz. But King's shut out the Valley the rest of the way and pushed across an insurance run in the fifth and seventh innings.
Freshman Kelly O'Toole (Monroe, N.Y./Monroe-Woodbury) started in the circle for LVC and suffered just her second loss of the season. O'Toole (5-2) was tagged for four runs on seven hits and one walk in four innings. She struck out four. Senior Jess Cooney (Rockledge, Pa./Abington) fired the final three innings and gave up two runs on five hits and one walk.
Kotula (11-1) started the second game for King's and picked up the win after throwing five innings. She gave up both of LVC's runs on five hits and two walks while striking out five.
Batz and O'Toole each had two hits in Game Two for LVC.
Lebanon Valley returns to action on Friday, when it hosts Susquehanna University in the Commonwealth Conference playoffs, which will be held on Friday and Saturday at the LVC Softball Park.
[Photo - Freshman Amy Batz, who went 5-for-7 in LVC's doubleheader against King's on Tuesday]
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