FREDONIA, N.Y. – The Cardinals returned to conference play on the road in the final weekend of regular season action as they looked to make a playoff push, taking on Fredonia in a doubleheader on Friday.
In game one, Fredonia jumped out to an early lead in the bottom of the first inning, capitalizing on multiple unearned runs before adding an RBI single from Chloe Whittingham and a two-run double by Kirsten Lajewski to take a 4-0 advantage.
Plattsburgh answered in the top of the second inning when senior
Megan Pillus (Poughkeepsie, N.Y./Spackenkill) put the Cardinals on the board with a two-run home run down the left field line, scoring junior
Emma Deo (Averill Park, N.Y./Averill Park) to cut the deficit to 4-2.
The Blue Devils responded with a decisive second inning, scoring six runs, five unearned, to break the game open. Avery Hill and Whittingham each recorded RBI hits, while Lajewski added her second two-run double of the game as Fredonia extended its lead to 10-2.
Fredonia added another run in the third on an RBI double from Hill before Plattsburgh got one back in the fourth inning. Senior
Gwen Noll (Massapequa, N.Y./St. Anthony's) drove in first-year
Allison Isaacs (Malta, N.Y./Shenendehowa) with a double to left center, trimming the deficit to 11-3. However, Fredonia answered in the bottom half of the inning with three more runs, highlighted by a two-RBI single from Mia Eickhoff, securing a 14-3 victory in the opener.
In game two, Fredonia once again struck first, taking a 1-0 lead in the opening inning on an RBI single from Arianna Lerouzes.
The Blue Devils extended their lead in the second inning, plating three runs behind RBI singles from Madison DeVore and Lerouzes, along with a bases-loaded walk drawn by Avery Hill to make it 4-0.
Plattsburgh broke through in the sixth inning when Pillus reached on a fielder's choice, allowing sophomore
Meghan Stork (Massapequa, N.Y./Massapequa) to score on a throwing error by the second baseman to cut the deficit to 4-1.
Fredonia responded in the bottom half of the inning, adding a run on a wild pitch before Hill delivered a three-run home run to center field to put the game out of reach and secure an 8-1 win, completing the sweep.
With the sweep, the Cardinals fall to 13-20 overall and 7-9 in conference play. Plattsburgh will be back in action tomorrow as they wrap up their season with a doubleheader against Buffalo State.
