Mecham tough in circle as Salem softball scores first win of season after dropping first game of the day in a walk-off; 4 in seventh send baseball to defeat
By Riverview Sports News
MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. – After losing its first game of the day in the most heartbreaking of ways, the Salem CC softball team bounced back in its second game to earn its first victory of the season, 9-0 over Henry Ford College.
Morgan Mecham spun the shutout, allowing eight hits and striking out seven. The Hawks threatened at times, but Mecham held them to 0-for-12 with their seven runners in scoring position.
The Mighty Oaks supported her with 11 hits, including four doubles. Courtney Hoggard and Emilie Hamm had two hits apiece, Vaye Savage drove in three runs and Haylee Pickrell plated a pair.
“We’re just starting to get in a groove as a team,” Oaks coach Angel Rodriguez said. “Game 1 was a great game against a very good Harford team. We had a few things that didn’t go our way, but we had one statement at the end of the game: How are you going to bounce back and handle the adversity in Game 2?
“They went out and stuck together as a team and earned a very sweet victory to finish the day.”
The Oaks suffered their third straight loss to open their Southern swing when Harford scored two runs in the bottom of the seventh to pull out a 4-3 victory. Salem led 2-0 after two innings and took a 3-2 lead in the sixth.
Their first two losses were equally tough to absorb – an 8-0 shutout in the opener and losing an early lead in the late innings of the second game – but this one went right down to the wire.
The Oaks took the lead in the sixth on Pickrell’s leadoff double and Kalila Pace’s RBI single to center.
Harford loaded the bases against reliever Caitlin LeGreca in the bottom of the seventh on a leadoff walk and two one-out walks before delivering a single up the middle to end the game.
LeGreca came in to start the fourth after starter Jill Robinson pitched three shutout innings to open the game.
Hoggard, Savage and Pickrell all had two hits for Salem.
GAME 1
| Salem CC | 110 | 001 | 0– | 3 | 8 | 2 |
| Harford CC | 000 | 200 | 2– | 4 | 10 | 1 |
GAME 2
| Salem CC | 212 | 001 | 3- | 9 | 11 | 0 |
| Henry Ford | 000 | 000 | 0- | 0 | 8 | 0 |
Baseball
Seventh-inning rally sinks Salem
MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. – Penn State Hazelton scored six runs in the final two innings, four with none out in the bottom of the seventh, to hand Salem CC a 10-9 defeat.
The Oaks rallied from an early 2-0 deficit to take a 7-2 lead in the top of the fourth and a 9-4 lead after batting in the sixth. Penn State’s four runs in the seventh came home on two bases-loaded walks, a bases-loaded hit batsman and a game-ending error in the infield.
Demetrius DeRamus had another big day at the plate for Salem with two hits and three RBIs. Matt Murphy and Cole Dawson had two hits apiece and Nick Ciesielka had two RBIs.
| Salem CC | 004 | 311 | 0- | 9 | 9 | 8 |
| PSU Hazelton | 021 | 112 | 4- | 10 | 9 | 4 |
Riverview Sports News 