Game 1 Box Score
Game 2 Box Score

IMMACULATA, Pa. – Immaculata University split a pair of games to Alvernia University in its home opener on Wednesday afternoon. After a thrilling 6-5 victory in the opener, the Mighty Macs fell in the nightcap, 9-0, in five innings to the Crusaders.
 
In the first game, the Mighty Macs (3-5) used a five-run rally in their final at bat to erase a 5-1 deficit and secure the win, 6-5. Junior third baseman Jenny Barnholt delivered the walk-off single with one out in the bottom of the seventh to score freshman pinch runner Patsy Murphy for the game-winning run.
 
In their final at-bat, the Mighty Macs had seven of their 14 total hits of the games and one walk as they sent nine hitters to the plate. Senior shortstop Holly Schell hit an RBI single to make it 5-2 before Immaculata loaded the bases with no outs. Freshman second baseman, and reigning CSAC Player of the Week, Melissa Ejk then hit a double to the right-center field fence to score two more runs and cut the Alvernia lead to 5-4. After an intentional walk and strikeout, sophomore right fielder Samantha Strickland hit a game-tying RBI single before Barnholt's heroics.
 
The Mighty Macs scored their lone run prior to the seventh in the bottom of the second when senior catcher Kenzie Brown had a RBI infield single to give Immaculata an early 1-0 lead.
 
The Crusaders (8-2) then scored the next five runs, and Alvernia led 5-1 through five innings of play.
 
Junior pitcher Meagan Fitzgerald (3-2) earned the win on the mound with a complete game, surrendering just two earned runs while striking out two.
 
Brittany Merkle, Christiana Donofry, Schell, Strickland and Brown each tallied two hits in the opening victory.
 
In the second game, Alvernia plated runners in the final four innings of the game after Immaculata escaped the top of the first with two Crusaders left on base.
 
Down 4-0 in the bottom of the third, Immaculata had a lead-off single by Barnholt to try to wake the Mighty Macs' bats up. Schell then came through in the clutch with two outs to single down the leftfield line, and Donofry came the inning alive with her single up the middle to load the bases for Immaculata. However, the Mighty Macs' run would end with all three runners left on base.
 
Alvernia added one more run in the fourth and tacked on four in the top of the fifth to cut the game short.
 
Schell, Donofry, Ejk, Strickland and Barnholt all had one hit during game two.
 
Senior pitcher Nicole Curcione took the loss in the circle as she allowed six earned runs on 11 hits in five innings.
 
Immaculata continues its play at home on Friday, March 15, opening the Colonial States Athletic Conference season with Notre Dame at 3 p.m.