Box Score
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ROCK HILL, SC— The Winthrop softball team fell behind early and couldn't recover as it fell 8-4 in the rubber match with Presbyterian College, Saturday afternoon at Terry Field.

The loss drops the Eagles to 17-16 overall and 5-4 in the Big South Conference while Presbyterian College improves to 17-16 and 3-4 in the league. Winthrop will be back in action on Wednesday, April 3 at 6 p.m. when it travels to Buies Creek, NC for a single-game against Campbell. PC steps away from league play as it travels to Spartanburg, SC to take on USC Upstate at 6 p.m. Wednesday.

The first inning was the difference in the game as Presbyterian College posted six runs. The Blue Hose used the long ball to build its lead as Kirby Legacki hammered a three-run home run to left field and then Alex Reetz hit a two-run shot to left center. Tera Powell started off the game with a single and then stole second to get into scoring position. Erin Ruff delivered a single to center to score Powell for a 1-0 lead.

Winthrop tried to fight its way back into the game as it cut the deficit to four runs in the bottom of the third. Kristy Noble connected on a two-out home run to right center, which was followed by consecutive singles by McKenzi Corn, Chelsey Schoenfeldt and Kathryn Eberlin. The third single by Eberlin scored Corn from second. Alex White followed with an infield single as her ground shot off the glove of pitcher Cat Tarvin, which loaded the bases. Tarvin was able to get out of the jam as Haley Zuehlke grounded out back to Tarvin to end the inning.

PC made it 8-2 with runs in the fifth and sixth innings. Ruff singled to center with no outs as Jill McLean scored from second after reaching on an infield single and then stealing second. In the sixth, a pinch-hit double to right center scored Morgan Durham from second. Durham was pinch-hit for by Courtney Lawton, who reached on a walk and then Durham replaced on the bases.

Winthrop put up a fight in the bottom of the seventh inning as it posted two runs thanks to RBI singles from Schoenfeldt and Eberlin. With two outs and Noble on second, Corn doubled to center as the shot was almost hauled in by Powell as it hit off the end of her glove as she approached the fence. Schoenfeldt followed with a single that just found its way through the hole at first to score Noble and then Eberlin plated Corn with a rip to left field. That brought up White, who was 8-for-10 at the plate in the series, but reliever Sydney Seigler earned her second save of the series with a strikeout to end the game.

Tarvin earned the win for PC as she tossed 6.2 innings allowing four runs on 12 hits with no walks and four strikeouts while Seigler faced just White to earn the save.

Winthrop started freshman Bradlee Holeman, but she allowed four runs on three hits with a walk in one-third of an inning and suffered the loss as she falls to 0-1 on the year. Sara Allen threw 5.1 innings of relief allowing four runs on five hits with a walk and two strikeouts.

Eberlin finished with three hits (second time in last four games) while Noble, Corn, Schoenfeldt and White all had two hits apiece. White finished the series 8-for-11 and now has a seven-game hitting streak.

Ruff was the only Blue Hose player with two hits as she also finished with two RBI while Legacki had three RBI to give her four in the three-game series.