Cooper's HR Ignites 9-2 Win In Game One; Also Sets The Single-Season Strikeout Mark

CHESTERTOWN, MD – Host Washington College and visiting Gettysburg split a Centennial Conference softball doubleheader on Saturday afternoon at Washington College Softball Field.  The Shorewomen won game one by a 9-2 score, while the Bullets captured game two, 7-3.  Washington is now 16-15 overall and 8-4 in the conference, while Gettysburg is now 15-12 and 7-3 respectively.

In game one, Washington scored six times in the bottom of the fourth inning to take a 6-0 lead.  Freshman Kristin Cooper (Georgetown, DE/Sussex Central) hit her sixth home run of the season over the centerfield fence to also plate sophomore Kylie Nottingham (Ocean City, MD/Stephen Decatur), who led off the inning with a walk, to put the Shorewomen up 2-0.  Sophomore Lauren Dockrill (San Diego, CA/Cathedral Catholic) then singled to left field and took second on an error by the Bullets.  The hit was her 100th career hit at Washington and became the 14th player in the program's history to notch 100 career hits.  She was also the first Shorewoman to net 100 hits before the end of her sophomore season.

Dockrill would score on a double to left off the bat of junior Brittany Walter (Forest Hill, MD/C. Milton Wright) to make it 3-0 and Walter would come home on a two-bagger to left by senior Sally Snover (Charlotte, NC/Myers Park) to push the lead to 4-0.  With one out, Snover scored on a fielder's choice to make it 5-0 and the scoring in the inning was capped on a single to right-center by junior Lindsey Glascock (Glenwood, MD/Glenelg) that scores freshman Christine Anderson (Palmer Lake, CO/Lewis-Palmer) to give the hosts a six-run lead.

Gettysburg would get on the board in the top of the fifth with a two-out, two-run double to left-center by Melissa Tighe that scored Maggie Maguire and Katie Lang to cut the lead to 6-2.

The Shorewomen would ice the game away with a three-run last of the sixth to provide the final margin.  Freshman Suzanne Patinella (Fallston, MD/Maryvale Prep) doubled to right-center and scored Glascock all the way from first to make it 7-2.  Cooper capped the scoring when she tripled down the right field line to drive in Patinella and Kylie Nottingham to make it 9-2.

Cooper sparked the offense with a 2-for-3 effort at the plate with four RBI and a run scored.  Patinella, Snover and Walter also had two hits, while Kylie Nottingham scored twice.  The Shorewomen had 12 hits in game one.  Cooper got the win in the circle as she pitched the first 6 2/3 innings before giving way to senior pitcher Meaghan Kimme (Lumberton, NJ/Holy Cross) for the final batter of the game.  Cooper allowed five hits, two earned runs and struck out eight while not walking a batter to improve to 8-4 on the year.  Cooper's eight strikeouts gave her the WC single-season record for strikeouts as she now has 79, breaking the mark set by Walter last year.  Her strikeout of Lindsey Peragallo for the second out in the top of the fifth gave her the record.  Kimme struck out her one batter she faced as WC pitching had nine punchouts in the game and had at least one in every inning.

Tighe went 2-for-3 with two RBI in the opener for Gettysburg as she had two of the five hits for the guests.  In the circle, Lanie Parr got the loss and falls to 3-5 as she lasted just 3 1/3 innings.

In game two, the Bullets got on the board in the top of the first when Tighe scored on a throwing error by the Shorewomen to take a 1-0 lead.  Washington tied it in the last of the second when Dockrill scored on a throwing error by Gettysburg to level the game at 1-1.

The Bullets took control of the second game with a five-run third as they took advantage of four Shorewomen errors.  With one out, Alexa Katz scored on a fielding error to give the guests a 2-1 lead.  Adrienne Rahs singled down the right field line to chase home Catrina DelGais and gave Gettysburg a 3-1 lead.  Rahs would score on a fielding error by Washington with two away to make it 4-1 and Joy Hallfors capped the inning with a two-run single up the middle to drive in Sam Bader and Abby Ferguson.

The Bullets scored once in the top of the fifth when Lindsey Treanor singled up the middle to drive in Bader with no outs to make it 7-1.  In the last of the fifth, Cooper delivered a two-out, two-run double to left-center that scored Anderson and Patinella to cut it to 7-3.  However, WC could get no closer and the Bullets got the win and the split.

Hallfors went 2-for-4 with two RBI and Treanor had two hits for Gettysburg in the win as they churned out 10 hits.  Treanor went the distance in the circle as she gave up three runs, two earned on seven hits.  She walked zero and struck out three to go to 8-2 as she has won eight straight decisions. 

Anderson and Patinella both went 2-for-4 with a run scored and Cooper drove in two for Washington.  In the circle, senior pitcher Jill Piasecki (Galena, MD/Kent County) took the loss and falls to 6-5.  She went 2 2/3 innings, giving up six runs, but only two were earned.  Piasecki allowed only two hits.

The Shorewomen return to the diamond on Tuesday in the home finale against visiting Swarthmore in Centennial Conference action at 3:00 p.m.