Drew University Athletics

HUNTINGDON, Pa. – The Drew University softball team moved closer to a berth in the Landmark Conference Championship tournament with a doubleheader split at Juniata College on Friday.
 
The Eagles won the opener 7-4, but the Rangers captured the second game 3-1.
 
Drew (23-15, 8-6 LC) finds itself in third place in the conference standings heading into its final two games of the season, a Landmark Conference doubleheader versus Catholic University at home on Saturday, May 2, starting at 1 p.m. The top-five teams in the final standings qualify for the Landmark's postseason tournament.
 
Senior Olivia Magliacano went 4-for-8 on the day, including two doubles and a big two-run single that broke a 1-1 tie in the top of the seventh of the second game.
 
Junior Allie Porbansky (8-3) scattered 10 hits while tossing a complete game to earn the win in the nightcap. She walked just one and struck out two.
 
In the second game, Juniata (14-22, 4-10 LC) took a 1-0 lead in the first inning, but the Rangers tied it in the fourth, when senior Haley Meierhofer roped a leadoff double, stole third, and scored on a sacrifice fly from freshman Lorelei Lorentzen.
 
Meanwhile, Porbansky went on to blank the Eagles the rest of the way and has now allowed just one run over her last two starts after firing a two-hit shutout versus Scranton this past Saturday. She worked out of numerous jams versus Juniata, however, as she stranded a runner on third in the second inning and left two runners on base in both the third and sixth innings.
 
The Rangers went in front in the seventh versus reliever Cheyenne Silvis, who entered the game in the fourth for starter Maddy Dietz, who tossed three shutout innings. Senior Aurora Marino led off with a single and pinch-runner Megan Williams was bunted to second by junior Karly Severinsen. Junior Kaitlynne Streets then reached on an error before Magliacano drilled what held up as the game-winning hit into leftfield.
 
In the opener, Drew broke out to a 3-0 lead in the first, which included RBI-singles from Meierhofer and Lorentzen and a run-scoring double from Marino.
 
Juniata scored once in the bottom of the inning versus sophomore starter Gabby Duran before tying it up with a two-run fourth. The Eagles went in front to stay with a four-run fifth, which was capped by a two-run homer from Eva Johnson.
 
The Rangers scored their final run in the seventh, when Lorentzen led off with a single before eventually scoring on an error.
 
Magliacano finished 3-for-4 with a pair of doubles in the opener while Meierhofer and Lorentzen smacked two hits apiece.
 
Duran (5-3) pitched four innings and was charged with the first six runs before Streets worked the final two frames in the circle, yielding one run.