BEL AIR, Md., April 12, 2018 – The Monroe College softball team, playing away from home for the first time in nearly a month, split a doubleheader at Harford Community College Thursday evening. The Mustangs grabbed a 5-3 win in the opener, but their comeback bid fell just short in Game 2, as the Fighting Owls claimed a 9-7 win. Monroe moves to 15-10 overall, while Harford goes to 15-14.
 
Game 1: Monroe 5, Harford 3
Kimberly Zapata led off the game with a single through the right side. Brooke Boechler followed with a walk, and then both runners moved up on a wild pitch. Chantel Winstead then hit a single to left, scoring Zapata to make it a 1-0 game. Veronica Casanova then singled into right, bringing in Boechler to put Monroe up, 2-0. Selena Aguirre brought in another run with a groundout to second, and then another came in when Brianna Martinez reached on an error, leaving the Mustangs up, 4-0.
 
The Fighting Owls took advantage of a few defensive miscues by the Mustangs in the bottom of the first, scoring a pair of runs on three errors to cut the deficit in half after one.
 
Alexis Mack hit a single with one away for Harford in the third. She then stole second and later advanced to third on an error. Erica James then singled her in to make it a 4-3 game.
 
An error and two walks loaded the bases for the Mustangs in the top of the seventh. Luna Hernandez then ripped a single through the hole on the left side, bringing in Boechler to make it a 5-3 game.
 
Winstead hit 2-for-3 with an RBI, a run scored and a stolen base in the Game-1 win. Zapata batted 2-for-4 with a run scored. Casanova knocked in a run and scored another herself after hitting 1-for-4.
 
Game 2: Harford 9, Monroe 7
Things got off to a tough start for the Mustangs in Game 2, as the Fighting Owls put up four runs in the bottom of the first for an early advantage.
 
In the top of the third, Casanova hit a two-out RBI single, scoring Zapata from second base to make it a 4-1 game.
 
Things took another turn for the worse in the bottom of the third, when the Fighting Owls collected five runs on five hits to go up, 9-1.
 
Harford's scoring ended after the third inning, while the Mustangs started mounting a comeback in the top of the fourth. Hernandez led off the frame with a walk, and ended up on third after stealing second and advancing on an error. Martinez drew another walk to put runners on the corners, and then Brianna Casiano singled in Hernandez to make it a 9-2 game. Martinez scored during the next at bat on a wild pitch to cut the deficit to six. Abigail Cancilla later flew out to left, long enough to bring home Casiano on a sacrifice fly and make it a 9-4 ballgame.
 
Monroe strung together another rally in the top of the sixth. With two outs, Cancilla kept the inning going with a single. Zapata walked, and then Boechler added another single to load the bases. A passed ball moved up all the runners, bringing in Cancilla to make it a four-run game. Winstead then singled in two more runs, making it a 9-7 game, but unfortunately, that was how things would stay.
 
Emily Bowler got the win for the Owls, while Kane shouldered the loss to fall to 8-7 on the season. Casiano tossed 3.2 innings in relief, allowing just four hits and no runs while striking out five.
 
Winstead finished 3-for-4 in Game 2 with two RBIs. Casiano batted 2-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored. Cancilla hit 1-for-3 with a run and an RBI.
 
The Mustangs get back to work on Saturday, April 14, when they visit Mercer County Community College in West Windsor, N.J. First pitch of the doubleheader is set for 12 p.m.
 
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE COLLEGE
The athletic program at Monroe College encompasses a total of 26 teams competing across nine sports. There are 18 varsity and junior varsity programs, as well as club men's rugby, and the newly added club women's rugby team, competing on the New Rochelle campus as the Monroe Mustangs (NJCAA Division I). The Monroe Express, based out of the Bronx campus, has six teams competing at the NJCAA Division III level as of the fall of 2017.
 
For more information about the Monroe Mustangs, please visit us at www.MonroeCollegeMustangs.com or follow us on social media: Facebook (Monroe College Athletics), Twitter (@Monroe_Mustangs) and Instagram (@monroemustangs).