Tompkins Cortland and Hartwick College combined to score 64 runs over the course of a wild doubleheader Sunday, with Hartwick taking the opener, 11-9, in extra innings and the Panthers taking game two, 23-21, in six innings. After the split, Tompkins Cortland stands at 5-13 on the season.
Game One: Hartwick 11, Tompkins Cortland 9 (8 innings)
The Panthers scored a run in the first inning, and held the lead until the third – the longest either team would hold a lead in game one. Hartwick moved in front with three in the top of the third, but the Panthers came back to tie it at 3-3 in the bottom of the third. A run by Hartwick in the top of the fourth was answered with five in the bottom of the frame, putting the home team up 8-4 after four. An error in the top of the fifth opened the door for the Hawks to score four runs, tying the score at 8-8. After a scoreless sixth, each team scored a run in the seventh to force extras. Hartwick pushed across two runs in the eighth, and the Panthers were unable to answer, making the final 11-9 for the Hawks.
Kiara Grover (Scio/Scio H.S.) went 3-for-5 at the plate with two RBI. She also pitched all eight innings, striking out seven and allowing just four earned runs. Gabby Foley (Barton/Tioga H.S.) also went 3-for-5 at the plate with two RBI, scoring twice.
Game Two: Tompkins Cortland 23, Hartwick 21 (six innings)
The nightcap brought the most runs by a Panthers team in 17 years, and the fourth most in a single game in the history of the program. It started quietly with a single run in the top of the first, and when Hartwick put three across in the bottom of the first, the Panthers trailed 3-1 heading into the second. In the second, the Panthers unloaded for eight hits, including three doubles, on route to scoring 12 runs. After setting down the Hawks without a run in the bottom of the inning, the Panthers tacked on two more in the top of the third to hold what seemed to be a commanding lead at 15-3. The lead started to melt in the rain in the bottom of the third, with Hartwick scoring nine to pull within three. Two more for the Panthers in the top of the fourth made it 17-12, but Hartwick continued to chip away with four in the bottom of the fourth to make it a one-run game at 17-16. After the Panthers stranded two runners in the fifth, Hartwick plated three in the bottom of the inning, regaining the lead at 19-17 as the rain intensified heading to the sixth.
The Panthers wasted little time tying the game in the sixth. Abby Foley (Barton/Toga H.S.) led off with a walk, and Austyn Vance (Nichols/Tioga H.S.) followed with her second triple of the game, driving in Foley and tying the game. A wild pitch brought in Vance with the tying score, but six of the next eight Panthers recorded hits, scoring four more and pushing the score to 23-19. Hartwick pushed two across in the bottom of the inning, but couldn't get all the way back. With field conditions deteriorating, the game was called after the sixth inning, giving the Panthers the win.
Vance put her name in the books, tying program records with five hits, three doubles, and two triples in game two. Her seven RBI was one shy of the most in program history. Sara Cargen (Homer/Homer H.S.) had a stellar game with her glove and bat, making several outstanding plays at second base and going 2-for-3 with five RBI at the plate. Abby Foley, Lana Thousand (Onondaga/Onondaga H.S.), and Ellery Ensign (Marathon/Marathon H.S.) each tied a program record by scoring four times, and each had a double, contributing to the team total of six doubles, which also tied a program record.
Grover earned the win in the circle, pitching 3.1 innings in relief.
Looking ahead
The Panthers return to Mid-State Athletic Conference 3 action on Tuesday, hosting Onondaga Community College at 3 p.m.