NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y., March 11, 2022 – The Monroe College Mustangs softball team dropped a pair of contests to Mercer County Community College on Friday in the Mustangs' home opener at Flowers Park.
 
GAME 1: MERCER COUNTY 13, MONROE 6
It was a rough start to the home opener for the Mustangs in Game 1. With a runner on in the top of the first, Bella Truelove blasted a home run to deep left field to make it a quick 2-0 lead for the visitors. Hailey Nardone then hit a line drive that got over the center fielder, allowing her to touch them all and make it a 3-0 game. Mercer County extended the lead in the top of the second when Lillian Torres-Perez hit a sacrifice fly to center, bringing in Gianna DeMatteo to give the Vikings a 4-0 edge.
 
The third inning saw production from both teams. In the top of the inning, Heather Kerlin hit a fly ball to left with a runner on that was dropped, allowing both runners to come all the way around to score and leave the Vikings up, 6-0.
 
In the home half of the inning, the Mustangs put together their first rally of the game. Nevaeh Gaynor singled up the middle and then stole second. Zoe Rivera dropped a single into short left to put runners on the corners, and then took second herself during the next at-bat to put both runners in scoring position. That proved to be worthwhile, as Thanysha Gil hit a single up the gut that scored both runners to bring the score to 6-2.
 
The Vikings had runners on second and third in the top of the fourth when Nardone singled to right-center, plating both runners to push the lead to 8-2. In the fifth, Mercer County had a runner on second when Mia https://youtu.be/nFiW6Np-7FQ tripled down the left-field line to make it a 9-2 game. Torres-Perez then hit a sacrifice fly to center, bringing in Land to go up, 10-2.
 
Facing a possible run-rule finish, the Mustangs needed to score in the home half of the fifth to keep the game going. They did just that, starting with a leadoff single by Gaynor. Rivera then ripped a homer to deep left field, keeping the Mustangs alive in Game 1 by making it a 10-4 ballgame.
 
Camryn Brooks hit a one-out single up the middle in the bottom of the sixth for Monroe. Miralba Sandez then came up to pinch hit, and roped an inside-the-park home run into the gap in left-center, bringing in two more runs for the Mustangs to make it a 10-6 game.
 
Mercer County added to its lead in the top of the seventh. With Haley Allen on first, Torres-Perez hit a single to left that bounced off the left fielder, allowing Allen to come all the way home and make it an 11-6 game. Truelove then hit a fly ball that was dropped in center, letting both runners come home to bring the score to 13-6.
 
Hilda Sanchez took the loss for Mustangs after yielding the lead in the first inning, falling to 0-4 on the season. Amanda Gonzalez got the win with four innings in relief for the Vikings to improve to 2-1.
 
Rivera finished 3-for-4 with two RBIs, two runs, a home run and a stolen base in Game 1. Gil batted 2-for-4 with two RBIs, while Gaynor went 2-for-4 with two runs scored. Brooks hit a double and scored once after going 3-for-3. Sandez made her one plate appearance count with a two-run homer. Naidely Cabrera hit 1-for-2 in the game.
 
GAME 2: MERCER COUNTY 13, MONROE 3 (5 INN)
The Vikings got off to a fast start in Game 2, as a hard grounder by Land just kept rolling through the gap, allowing her to sprint around the bases for a home run and make it a 1-0 score one batter into the game. With runners on second and third, Gonzalez hit a grounder to short, but the throw was muffed at first, allowing both runners to score and make it a 3-0 game.
 
In the top of the second, DeMatteo singled to lead off the inning, and then Allen followed suit with a single of her own. With one down, Torres-Perez hit a single to center, scoring DeMatteo to make it a four-game game. Truelove followed with a two-RBI double, pushing the lead to six. Two batters later, Gonzalez singled into right, scoring Truelove to leave the Vikings up, 7-0.
 
The scoring continued for the Vikings in the third. With the bases loaded, Truelove sent a long fly ball just short of the left-field fence, resulting in a bases-clearing triple to make it a 10-0 score. Nardone then singled her in to leave the Vikings up, 11-0.
 
The Mustangs got on the board in the bottom of the fourth. With one out, Rivera hit a liner just out of reach of the center fielder, allowing her to run around the bases for another inside-the-park home run, making it an 11-1 game.
 
The Vikings once again got on the board in the fifth. With two outs and a runner on first, Brianna Lee hit a pinch-hit single to right and got all the way to third on an error, bringing in Land from third to make it a 12-1 game. A wild pitch then scored Lee to push the lead to 13-1.
 
In the bottom of the fifth, Leiloni Pina led off the frame with a long line drive into the gap in left-center that kept rolling to the fence, giving Pina an inside-the-park home run to make it a 13-2 game. Mya Jack hit a one-out single, moving to second on an error. She then stole third, and came home when the throw got away to bring the score to 13-3.
 
DeMatteo went all five innings in the circle for Mercer County in Game 2 to pick up the win and improve to 1-1. Asia Gonzalez took the loss for Monroe to fall to 0-2 on the season.
 
Rivera went 1-for-3 with her second homer of the day in Game 2. Jack hit 1-for-3 with a run and a stolen base. Pina homered as well in a 1-for-2 outing.
 
The Mustangs will look to bounce back on Thursday, March 17, when they take on the Monroe College Express in a doubleheader at Flowers Park. Thursday's first game is set to begin at 2 p.m.
 
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE COLLEGE
The athletic program at Monroe College encompasses a total of 35 teams competing across nine sports. There are 21 varsity and junior varsity programs, as well as club men's and women's rugby, the Monroe College marching band, and the newly added esports and men's volleyball programs, competing on the New Rochelle campus as the Mustangs (NJCAA Division I). The Monroe Express, based out of the Bronx campus, has 14 teams competing at the NJCAA Division III level.
 
For more information about the Monroe Mustangs, please visit us at www.MonroeCollegeMustangs.com or follow us on social media: Facebook (Monroe Mustangs Athletics), Twitter (@Monroe_Mustangs) and Instagram (@monroemustangs). Read Full Article