BEL AIR, Md., April 27, 2024 – The Monroe College Mustangs softball team is heading back to South Carolina for the second straight year, as the Mustangs earned their way into the Region 10 Championship tournament by sweeping a Region 10 play-in series at Harford Community College on Saturday. The Mustangs needed just two games to win the best-of-three series, defeating the Fighting Owls by scores of 3-1 and 5-4. The Mustangs will now be part of next weekend's Region 10 Championship, which will be hosted at Patriot Park in Sumter, S.C.
 
GAME 1: Monroe 3, Harford 1
Game 1 featured a pitcher's duel on Saturday. After two scoreless innings, the Mustangs got on the board first in the top of the third. Nathalie Mongrain led off the inning with a single to left, followed by another single by Gabrielle Gonzalez. Aisling Wilson then hit Monroe's third straight single into left, with an error in left field allowing Mongrain to come home and give the Mustangs a 1-0 lead.
 
Harford quickly tied the game in the bottom of the third. After a lead-off triple by Alexia Gresko, the next two batters did not reach base. With two down, Anna Sexton reached on an error by the shortstop, bringing Gresko home to tie the game at 1-1.
 
The Mustangs then brought what proved to be the final two runs of the game home in the top of the fourth. Amber Miltenberg and Veronika Anderson hit back-to-back doubles to give the Mustangs the lead. With one out, a ground out by Maricela Colon brought Anderson home to make it a 3-1 ballgame.
 
Sarah Wall was terrific once again in Game 1, going all seven innings without allowing an earned run. She struck out eight batters while allowing just four hits to even her record at 12-12. Sexton took the loss in the circle for the Fighting Owls to drop to 9-5.
 
Anderson hit 2-for-3 with a pair of doubles, a run and the game-winning RBI in Game 1. Miltenberg also hit 2-for-3 with a double and a run scored. Mongrain batted 1-for-3 with a run. Wilson batted 3-for-4 in the win. Gonzalez and Georgia Burr each went 1-for-3, while Angie Ordonez finished 1-for-4.
 
GAME 2: Monroe 5, Harford 4
Harford got the early jump on the Mustangs in Game 2 when Alexis Trzeciak hit an RBI double in the bottom of the second to give the home team a 1-0 lead. The Mustangs then wasted no time taking the lead in the top of the third. After back-to-back one-out singles by Mongrain and Gonzalez, Wilson slammed a three-run homer to give Monroe a 3-1 advantage.
 
Burr hit a one-out single in the fourth, followed by a double by Colon to put runners on second and third. Mongrain then hit a sacrifice fly to center, bringing Burr home for a 4-1 lead.
 
Harford made a push to get back into the game in the home half of the fourth. With two on and two outs, Arianna Blum hit a two-RBI double to center, clearing the bases to bring the score to 4-3.
 
The Mustangs then added to their lead in the fifth. Wilson reached on an error, and then Marissa Thalassinos hit a one-out single to right. Anderson then stroked a two-out double down the left-field line, bringing Wilson home from second to make it a 5-3 ballgame.
 
The Fighting Owls loaded the bases with two outs in the fifth. Ali Kirsch was then hit by a pitch to bring in a run and make it a 5-4 game, but the Mustangs limited the damage to just the one run. That run proved to be the final run of the day, as the Mustangs held on in the final two frames for the one-run victory to send themselves to South Carolina.
 
Gabriella Diaz went the first five innings for the Mustangs, allowing just four runs with three strikeouts to earn her 10th win of the year. Wall then came on for the final two innings, giving up just one hit with two strikeouts to pick up her third save of the year. Caroline Hilyard took the loss for the Fighting Owls.
 
Wilson batted 2-for-4 with a three-run homer and two runs scored in Game 2. Gonzalez hit 3-for-4 with a run. Anderson batted 2-for-4 with her third double of the day and an RBI. Gonzalez scored a run after going 3-for-4. Mongrain hit 1-for-2 with an RBI and a run. Colon doubled in a 1-for-3 game. Burr knocked in a run after hitting 1-for-3. Thalassinos batted 1-for-2.
 
The Mustangs will now await the seeding for the Region 10 Championship, which will be hosted at Patriot Park in Sumter, S.C. The tournament will be held from May 2-4.
 
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE COLLEGE
The athletic program at Monroe College encompasses a total of 28 teams competing across nine sports. There are 20 varsity and junior varsity programs, as well the Monroe College marching band, competing on the New Rochelle campus as the Mustangs (NJCAA Division I). The Monroe Express, based out of the Bronx campus, has seven 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 (@MonroeMustangs) and Instagram (@monroemustangs). Read Full Article