No. 2 Seahawks Down No. 3 CSM on Day 1

KEYSER, W.V. - Cecil softball grabbed an important win on Friday evening, defeating No. 3 Southern Maryland 9-3 on the opening day of the Region 20 Division 2 Tournament.

The Seahawks (21-10) move on to face No. 1 seed Potomac State on Saturday, May 9 at Noon, with the winner advancing to the final. 

Trailing 1-0 in the bottom of the second, Cecil's offense would take over. Gabriella Smith started the inning off with a solo home run. After a flyout, Riley deRoulac put a ball over the wall to hand Cecil its first lead. The Hawks would pick up a second out, but Cecil rallied with two singles, a pair of walks and an error to score three more runs for a 5-1 lead before the inning was over.

Stapleford (15-2) sat down CSM in order during the third and fourth innings. The Seahawks continued building their advantage, picking up three more runs in the third. Both teams scored one run in the fifth, with Cecil entering the sixth ahead 9-2.

The Hawks put a pair of baserunners on to begin the sixth, but Stapleford stepped up one more time and struck out three straight batters to hault their momentum. Taja Souza stepped into the circle for the seventh, allowing one run on a double and an error before forcing the final three hitters to ground out.

Riley deRoulac and Kylee Bergman led Cecil at the dish with three hits each. Keira Fendt collected two hits and a walk. Souza walked twice and chipped in two runs and an RBI.

Stapleford finished with 13 strikeouts over six frames. She allowed two runs (one earned) on five hits and walk. 80 of her 111 pitches landed for strikes.