NAPLES, FL – Junior Janelle Walters, Senior Mackenzie Kapp and freshman Leah Simon had two hits each as the Nazareth College softball team built an early lead but SUNY Canton rallied for six runs in the seventh inning to escape with an 8-6 win Monday in the second game of the day for the Golden Flyers.
Nazareth (0-4) fell in the first game, 13-2 to Coast Guard.
Walters singled and scored in the first inning against Canton (3-1) as Nazareth took an early lead.
Canton took a lead in the second inning with a pair of runs but Nazareth rebounded with a three-run inning in the bottom half of the frame to regain the lead.
Kapp singled and later scored on a wild pitch for the first run of the inning. With two outs and two runners on, Simon singled to score senior Kristen Simmons to give Nazareth the lead and junior Katherine Ruoff added another run on a throwing error to give the Golden Flyers a 4-2 lead.
Kapp added another run in the fourth when she doubled to start the inning and later scored on a ground out for a 5-3 Nazareth lead.
Walters added another run in the sixth when she hit a bunt single and moved to third with a stolen base and a wild pitch. She scored on an infield groundout for the 6-3 lead.
The Kangaroos rallied to push across six runs in the top of the seventh inning to take an 8-6 lead and the Golden Flyers were retired in order in the bottom of the inning as Canton held on for the win.
Walters and Kapp had two runs each while Simmons and Ruoff each had a hit and run for Nazareth.
In the first game of the day, Coast Guard scored five runs in the fist and five more in the third inning to take an early lead. Nazareth scored twice in the bottom of the third but the Bears added a run in the fourth and two more in the fifth for the run-rule victory.
Sophomore Aubrin Smith and junior Marissa Drees had two hits each to lead the Nazareth offense while Simmons added a hit and two runs batted in.
The Golden Flyers will face Wilmington and Curry Tuesday at the Century Link Complex in Fort Myers.
