PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. – The Plattsburgh State softball team dropped both ends of a State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) doubleheader to conference-leading SUNY Cortland Monday at Cardinal Park, falling to the Red Dragons, 11-3, in six innings in game one before dropping an 11-1 verdict in game two. It marked the Cardinals' final home games of the regular season.
 
Plattsburgh State drops to 11-15 overall (5-7 SUNYAC) with the losses and next visits SUNY New Paltz tomorrow for a 3 p.m. doubleheader. Cortland rises to 21-12 overall (13-3 SUNYAC) with the wins and hosts Alfred University next on Wednesday, April 24, at 3 p.m.
 
Game 1: Cortland 11, Plattsburgh State 3 (6 inn.)
 
Cortland scored nine runs in the first three innings and finished with 12 hits to come away with an 11-3 victory in six innings in game one of the doubleheader.
 
The Red Dragons got on the board with three runs in the first, as senior designated player Hannah Feldman drove in a run with an RBI single, while freshman third baseman Alyssa Finno plated two with a double to left center. Sophomore left fielder Sabrina Caputo scored on a wild pitch in the second before the Red Dragons broke the game open with a five-run third.
 
Plattsburgh State cut the gap to 9-3 in the fourth. Junior right fielder Frannie Merkel (Brewster, N.Y./Brewster) put the Cardinals on the board with an RBI infield single, while freshman first baseman Alex McKearin (Valatie, N.Y./Ichabod Crane) drove in a run on a single to center field before senior center fielder Amy Glashoff (Montrose, N.Y./Hendrick Hudson) followed senior pitcher/left fielder Jennifer Groat (Ballston Spa, N.Y./Ballston Spa) across home plate after a misplay by a Red Dragon outfielder.
 
Cortland enacted the run rule in the sixth after senior third baseman Jess Marsh drove in a run with a sacrifice fly and junior catcher Hannah Thornhill ripped an RBI single to right center.
 
Senior shortstop Kaitlyn Preiss (Cornwall, N.Y./Cornwall) and Groat each led the Cardinal bats by going 2-for-3, while junior center fielder Kelly O'Gorman, Finno and Caputo all registered multiple hits for Cortland.
 
Groat pitched the first 2 1/3 innings for Plattsburgh State, while freshman pitcher Elliana Bowlen (Keeseville, N.Y./AuSable Valley) permitted four runs (one earned) on eight hits and two walks in 3 2/3 innings of relief. Senior pitcher Sam Van Dorn earned the win in the circle for Cortland, yielding three runs (two earned) on seven hits while striking out six.
 
Game 2: Cortland 11, Plattsburgh State 1
 
Cortland plated seven runs across the sixth and seventh innings while pounding out 19 hits to complete the doubleheader sweep.
 
Feldman fired the opening salvo with an RBI single to center field in the first, while O'Gorman and sophomore shortstop Taylor Felicello each drove in a run in the second. Junior second baseman Tori Scharff made it a 4-0 game with a sacrifice fly in the third before freshman second baseman Emily Nagle (Monroe, N.Y./Washingtonville) pushed across freshman pinch runner Gabby Rodriguez (Albany, N.Y./Albany) in the fourth to trim the gap to 4-1.
 
A dropped fly ball allowed two runs to score for Cortland in the sixth before graduate student first baseman Skyler Hoyt extended the lead to 7-1 with an RBI single through the left side two batters later. In the seventh, O'Gorman plated two runs with a triple to right center, while Felicello and Feldman each drove in a run to stake Cortland to an 11-1 advantage.
 
Junior designated player Haleigh Agans (Brasher Falls, N.Y./St. Lawrence Central) batted 2-for-2 to pace the Cardinals in the nightcap, while O'Gorman led the Red Dragon bats. O'Gorman fell a home run shy of the cycle, going 4-for-4 with three runs scored and three RBI.
 
Freshman pitcher Hannah Fuerst (West Seneca, N.Y./West Seneca East) was tagged with the loss for the Cardinals, allowing seven runs (five earned) in 5 2/3 innings of work. Sophomore pitcher Cady Walts earned the win for the Red Dragons, giving up one run on six hits and five walks while striking out four.