ST. AUGUSTINE – Flagler College split a Peach Belt Conference softball doubleheader with the University of Montevallo Saturday afternoon at Flagler Field. The Saints took the opener 4-1, but the Falcons rolled to a 10-2 victory in five innings in the second game.
Flagler is now 8-27 overall and 1-11 in the Peach Belt. Montevallo moves to 18-23 overall and 8-8 in conference play.
In the opener,
Haleigh Corbally (3-6) tossed a three-hitter as she allowed just one run, walked three and struck out four. She induced 12 fly outs and retired another four on ground outs. Corbally retired 14 of 15 batters starting with the last out of the first inning.
After the Falcons plated a run in the first, the Saints answered in the bottom half.
Kelli Parker led off with a walk and was sacrificed over to second base.
Mackenzie Conley followed with a ringing single to right-center to score Parker.
With two outs in the fifth,
Malloree Escue singled up the middle and took third when
Maddy Murphy lofted a ball over third base, just a couple feet down the left field line, and the ball took a crazy hop into foul territory away from the Falcon defenders for a double.
Kayla Fuller reached on an error by the Montevallo shortstop which allowed Escue to score the eventual game-winning run. On the play, Murphy tried to score but got caught in a rundown.
Flagler added two more insurance runs in the sixth with the help of a pinch hit two-run double by
Hannah Hudson.
Hollianne Dohrn collected three singles and scored a run. Conley had two singles and one run batted in while Murphy went 2-for-3 with the double.
Jostlyn Higgerson (13-16) surrendered 11 hits and three earned runs for Montevallo. She walked two and struck out two.
Jessica Mentzler hit a double for the Falcons.
In the second game, Montevallo took advantage of six Flagler errors and scored nine unearned runs in a game shortened to five innings due to the mercy rule.
The Saints took a quick 2-0 lead on a two-run single by Fuller.
That would be all the offense the Saints could muster against Jana Kelbie Armstrong (4-4). She tossed four innings, allowed five hits and two runs. Kelsey King came on and pitched a scoreless fifth.
The Falcons erupted for three runs in the third inning and sent eight batters to the plate. Rachael Conley led off the inning with a base hit to right field and took second when the throw back into the infield got away from the cutoff man. Shelby Lopez dropped down a bunt intended to be a sacrifice, but was placed well enough to beat the throw at first base for a hit. Conley advanced to third. Kelsey Vining was awarded first base on a catcher's interference to load the bases. Celestia Davila followed with a grounder to shortstop which was booted allowing Conley to score. Two batters later, Hannah McCreless hit a single to left to score Lopez which tied the game at 2-all. Sydney Abounassar hit a fly ball just a few feet into foul territory off the right-field line which was caught and Vining scored from third to give Montevallo a 3-2 lead.
The wheels came off Flagler's wagon in the fifth inning when Montevallo sent 11 batters to the plate and scored seven runs. All of those runs were unearned due to three more Flagler miscues.
Vining finished with two singles, two runs scored and two RBI. Davila and Dylan Bailey each hit a double.
Mackenzie Conley hit a double while Parker,
Lauren Roudabush, Fuller and
Mallory Allen each hit a single.
Katelynn Smith (2-8) tossed 4.2 innings and surrendered seven hits. She allowed one earned run, walked three and fanned three.
Erin Anderson tossed the last one-third of an inning.
Flagler hosts Palm Beach Atlantic University in a doubleheader tomorrow (March 29) at 1:30 p.m. The twinbill was supposed to be played on Friday, but due to wet conditions and a forecast of more rain, the games were postponed until Sunday.
