Russo Launches Grand Slam as Softball Drops Pair at Home to Fairmont

FROSTBURG, Md. – The Frostburg State Softball team dropped a pair of home contests to Fairmont State on Wednesday by scores of 8-1 and 7-4.
 
The Fighting Falcons took an early lead in game one, as a pair of walks and a clutch two-out, two RBI single put the visitors ahead in the first. The Bobcats were able to pull a run back in the bottom half, as freshman Bri Russo and senior Samara Funk lined back-to-back singles, with the former brought in on another knock from senior Hanna Binek for a 2-1 score.
 
Pitching dominated the next few innings, as junior Ally Myers and Fairmont's Caitlin Morey locked in, sitting down the sides in order during the second. The Falcons managed an infield single and a stolen base in the second but nothing more, while Frostburg had a runner reach on an error but similarly not much else. Throughout the third and fourth frames, both sides had one batter reach base, while in the fifth Fairmont drew one walk but it was the only runner allowed, taking things into the sixth still at 2-1.
 
Liz Waszkiewicz drew a leadoff walk for the visitors and stole second, then got to third on a groundout before being brought home on an RBI double to straightaway center, providing an insurance run at 3-1. Junior Arden Miller lined a double down the left field line in the Bobcat at-bats but couldn't get another score on the board. Fairmont then broke the game open in the seventh, plating a pair of home runs and another two out, two-RBI single for five runs in the frame and an 8-1 lead. Frostburg got a pair of runners on in the bottom half from junior Ashlyn Routzahn lining a ball up the middle and freshman Lauren Homa getting hit by a pitch, but three straight outs ended the game with the Falcons winning by seven.
 
Freshman Izabella Donaldson took the circle for the Bobcats to start game two and dealt with some early control issues, walking the first two batters and hitting the third to load the bases with no outs. After a coaching visit to the mound, she swiftly dealt with the trouble on the basepaths, striking out the side to end the frame scoreless. Binek drew a lead-off walk in the bottom half, advancing up on a sac bunt from Russo, but was left stranded on a strikeout and fly out.
 
Donaldson again worked out of walking the first batter in the second with a groundout, strikeout, and foul out, then again worked through a relatively clean third. In the bottom half, Binek and Russo reached on back-to-back knocks, with Miller then getting hit by a pitch with two outs to load the bases, but a grounder back to the pitcher brought the frame to a close. Fairmont was able to take advantage of a leadoff error to start the fourth, using an infield single, passed ball, and sac bunt to plate the first run. Their offense wasn't done, as a walk, second passed ball, and RBI single plated another three for a 4-0 lead.
 
Homa drew a one-out walk in the bottom half of the fourth, though a fly out seemed as if it would lead to another scoreless inning. Junior Gracie Nelson had other ideas, however, grounding a ball up the middle to keep the inning alive. Binek followed with a walk, then Russo mashed a ball far and deep into left for a bases-clearing grand slam and a stunning 4-4 tie. The Falcons didn't let things stay that way for long, as in the top of the fifth they used a pair of singles, a wild pitch, and an error to plate two more runs to regain the lead 6-4.
 
Frostburg again put runners on to threaten in the fifth, as freshman Zoey Marinello and senior Cristina Sommerkamp kicked things off with a pair of walks. After a wild pitch allowed the runners to move up, freshman Kylie Pytlak was also awarded a base on balls, but Fairmont was able to get out of it with a grounder back to the pitcher and a pop up to first to end the inning still up by two. The Falcons then added another insurance run in the sixth with a two-out infield single, walk, and double making things 7-4. Frostburg only managed one more baserunner in the final two innings, a Russo single, as Fairmont sat the side down in order in the seventh to take the sweep.
 
Russo was the lone Bobcat to record a multi-hit day, going a combined 4-of-6 with all four RBI coming on her grand slam.
 
With the losses, Frostburg drops to 8-18 on the year, while Fairmont improves to 19-10-1. The Bobcats next face a road stretch beginning Saturday, March 29 at West Liberty with a doubleheader set to begin at 2 p.m. Information and updates will be posted to frostburgsports.com.