Huntingdon softball splits on opening day

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Huntingdon softball team earned a split in its first two games of the season.

The Lady Hawks faced Birmingham-Southern College and Centre in the Birmingham-Southern Invitational on Saturday. Huntingdon opened with a 3-2 loss to BSC in eight innings and finished the day with a 16-8 win against Centre.

"I saw a lot of good things we can build off of today," Huntingdon head coach Gynger Williams said. "I feel good about the way we progressed from the first inning of the day until the last. There was a world of difference from the way we started the day to the way we finished."

Huntingdon (1-1) got off to a slow start at the plate and managed just two hits in the first game, both by Holly Ostrander. But the Lady Hawks answered with 18 hits against Centre. Ostrander finished the day 5-for-6 with three RBIs and two runs.

"In the second game, Ashley Johnson led off with a single and that sort of set the tone for us," Williams said. "We started hitting the ball well. Holly and Brittany Richardson both had good days at the plate. Everyone hit pretty well in the second game."

Six players recording at least two hits against Centre. Richardson and Ostrander led Huntingdon with three hits and three RBIs apiece in the game. Richardson also scored four runs in the game and five runs on the day.

Johnson, Gabby Alcantar, Aleah Payne and Melissa McClure each had two hits. Lauren Welch added two RBIs and Payne had a solo home run. Payne and Jenna Rimensnyder each scored three times.

Bree Giordana (1-1) picked up the win against Centre and took the loss against Birmingham-Southern. Giordana struck out two, walked two and allowed two hits in 2 2/3 innings against Centre. In the loss, she struck out four, walked two and allowed one earned run and seven hits in 7 1/3 innings.

Against Birmingham-Southern, Huntingdon led 2-1 when the Panthers tied the game on a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the sixth. In the eighth inning, an RBI single ended the game.

Huntingdon had jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the top of the third inning as Rimensnyder scored on an Alcantar RBI and Richardson scored on an error. The Panthers answered with a run in the bottom of the third.

Huntingdon returns to action in the tournament on Sunday and will play Alabama A&M at 2 p.m.