NEWPORT NEWS, Va.- The Wilson College softball team continued their showing in the Newport News regional of the NCAA tournament. The Phoenix (25-13-1) started the day with a game against Hunter College (22-14) and were able to earn their first win of the tournament with a final score of 2-0. Later in the afternoon, Wilson dropped a close one against Messiah University ( (29-14) by a score of 3-2 to end their run in the NCAA tournament.
Game One: Graduate student
Megan Potter (Hagerstown, MD., South Hagerstown) started on the mound for the Phoenix, leading the Wilson defense by not allowing a hit over the first two innings. The Wilson offense gained some traction in the bottom of the third inning. With bases loaded, junior
Taylor Barker (Chehalis, WA., WF West) stepped to the plate and hit a fielder's choice which allowed senior
Jessica Kosheba (Marietta, PA., Donegal) to reach home plate. In the bottom of the fourth inning, the Phoenix found their second run of the game after junior
Alyssa Wenger (Chambersburg, PA., Chambersburg) hit a sacrifice fly to left field bringing home graduate student
Meghan Bradley (Warrington, PA., Central Bucks South) bringing the score to 2-0. Potter remained perfect for the remainder of the game to keep the Hawks offense without a run and secure the first win in the tournament in program history.
Inside the Box Score: Potter finished the game only allowing one hit while having nine strikeouts to pick up her 16th win of the season. Bradley and Kosheba each had one hit and one run scored for the Phoenix. Wilson ended game one with two runs, seven hits, and one error while Hunter College ended with no runs, one hit, and no errors.
Game Two: Wilson and Messiah both started the game off with strong defenses with each team only allowing one hit over the first three innings. Messiah's offense struck first with a home run out to left field to give the Falcons a 1-0 lead at the top of the fourth inning. In the bottom of the fifth inning, Kosheba hit a double to center field which brought home Bradley bringing the score to 1-1 and leaving Kosheba on third base after advancing on the throw home. On the next at-bat, Wenger grounded out to first base allowing the Phoenix to gain the lead with Kosheba reaching home giving Wilson a 2-1 lead moving into the top of the sixth inning. With two runners on base for Messiah in the top of the sixth inning, Jaden Keister hit a double to left field which allowed the Falcons to regain the lead by one run. Wilson tried to fight their way back into the lead but came up short as the game ended with a final score of 3-2,
Inside the Box Score: Graduate student
Katey Roth (Lebanon, PA., Lebanon), Bradley, and Kosheba each had a hit for the Phoenix while Bradley and Kosheba again scored the runs for Wilson. The Phoenix ended the game with two runs, three hits, and two errors while Messiah finished with three runs, three hits, and one error.
Up Next: This concludes the 2022 season for the Wilson College softball team.
