Owings Mills, Md. (April 15) – The Stevenson Mustangs softball team displayed resilience across both games of Wednesday's non-conference doubleheader against Salisbury, ultimately falling in 6 innings,10-2, for the first game and 5-4 in game two. After a tough opening game, the Mustangs nearly completed a five-run comeback in the nightcap, rallying late before coming up just short.
Game 1:
Stevenson came out strong in the opening inning, manufacturing an early lead. After
Sahara Ward reached base and moved into scoring position,
Ava Stafursky delivered an RBI double to left center to put the Mustangs ahead 1–0.
Salisbury responded in the second inning with a solo home run before adding another run later in the frame to take a 2–1 lead. The Seagulls extended their advantage in the third inning with a five-run outburst, highlighted by a three-run home run, to go up 7–1.
Despite the deficit, Stevenson continued to battle. In the fourth inning,
Sierra Williams reached and later came around to score on a wild pitch, cutting into the lead at 8–2. The Mustangs showed discipline at the plate throughout, drawing three walks and putting pressure on Salisbury's defense and unfortunately unable to come from behind as the Seagulls put up two more runs to force the 6-inning game, 10-2.
In the circle,
Anna Sexton (6-6) got the start, while
Alexis Kirkessner provided solid relief, tossing four innings and limiting further damage while striking out one.
Game 2:
Salisbury struck early, plating runs in the first and second innings to take a 2-0 lead before adding another in the fourth and two more in the fifth to extend the advantage to 5-0.
Despite being held hit less through the first five innings, the Mustangs showed resilience in the sixth.
Mya Lamp got things started by scoring on a wild pitch to put Stevenson on the board. Later in the inning,
Olivia Munoz delivered an RBI single through the right side, followed by an RBI single from
Teagan Kreshik to cut the deficit to 5-3.
Stevenson continued to apply pressure in the seventh inning. After capitalizing on a Salisbury error to put runners in scoring position,
Ellie Lamer came through with an RBI single to center field, bringing the Mustangs within one at 5-4. The comeback effort ultimately fell just short, as Salisbury held on for the narrow victory.
Kreshik, Lamer, and Munoz each recorded a hit and an RBI to lead the Mustangs offensively, while the pitching staff settled after a
Lilly Tinker (1-1), with
Madison Statuto tossing 2.1 scoreless innings in relief.
The Mustangs will return to action on Saturday, April 18, when they host Albright in a MAC Commonwealth doubleheader at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. Stevenson will also honor its seniors following game two.
