SOFTBALL DROPS THREE AT RADFORD INVITATIONAL

BOX SCORE 1 | BOX SCORE 2 | BOX SCORE 3 RADFORD, Va. – Radford dropped three games, two by one run, on the only day of the weather shortened Radford Invitational. Tomorrow's contests have been canceled due to the wintery weather coming to the New River Valley. The Highlanders were defeated by Binghmaton 16-6 and 5-4 and by Kent State, 4-3.

Senior Jessica Agee finished 5-for-9 with a double and three RBI, while freshman Becky Mantel went 4-for-8 with two doubles and HR, three RBI and four runs scored.

Radford returns to action on Wednesday when it travels to Farmville, Va. for a single Big South Conference game at newcomer Longwood. First pitch is scheduled for 4:00 p.m.

Binghamton 16, Radford 6 (6)

Powered by an eight-run fourth and 14 hits, Binghamton defeated Radford, 16-6 in the opener of the Radford Invitational. With scored tied at two, the Bearcats would scored three in the second and eight in the fourth to take command of the game.

Agee was 2-for-3 with two RBI and Emily Naegele hit a two-run home run and scored two runs for the Highlanders.

Binghamton's Jessica Bump was 4-for-5 with home run, five RBI and four runs scored. Additionally, Lisa Cadogan went 2-for-3 with a home run and three RBI and Caitlyn Friis scored three times.

Cadogan gave the Bearcats a quick 2-0 lead with a two-out two run long ball in the first.

Naegele erased that deficit with one swing of the bat. Following a leadoff walk, Naegele lined the ball of the rightfield fence to even the contest at 2-2. It was her fourth of the season and extended her hitting streak to seven games.

The Bearcats did not waste any time regaining lead as another two-out hit and an error pushed their advantage to 5-2 in the second. Bump knocked in the two runs with a single to left and scored from second on throwing error on the following bunt.

Behind four hits, four walks, a hit by pitch and a Radford error, Binghamton scored with runs to take command, 13-2 in the fourth. The Bearcats sent 13 batters to the plate and only three hits scored runs, courtesy of a two-run single from Savonna Connolly and RBI singles by Mikala King and Sydney Harbaugh. They also scored on sac fly, two bases loaded walks and one hit batter with the bases juiced.

Radford extended the game with a four-run fifth, two coming on Agee's two-run single and another on a run-scoring single by freshman Whitney Davis.

Bump capped off the scoring in the sixth on a three-run round tripper.

Kent State 4, Radford 3

Radford's rally from an early 4-0 deficit came up short as it fell 4-3 to Kent State. Radford had the tying run on third with two outs, but on a pitch to the screen the runner hesitated and was caught in a rundown to end the contest.

Solo home runs by Jessie Hutchens and Mantel cut the deficit to 4-2. Mantel's, along with an RBI infield single by senior Morgan Eye, made it 4-3 in the fifth.

In the seventh, freshman Nia Chiles drew a leadoff walk after falling behind 0-2. She was sacrificed to second and moved to third on a ground out. When the first pitch of an intentional walk sailed high over the catcher, Chiles stopped more than halfway down the line and was eventually tagged out in a rundown.

Emma Johnson picked up the complete game win, scattering six hits and striking out six with two walks. Kim Kirkpatrick and Dani Ramos went 3-for-4 and 2-for-4 for the Golden Flashes.

Kent State scored two two-out runs in the first and second innings to grab a 4-0 lead. In the first, the Golden Flashes loaded the bases and received a RBI single from Lauren Grimes and also scored on a wild pitch. They scored without a hit thanks to a walk, hit batter and two errors.

Hutchens went 2-for-2 with a RBI and two runs scored for the Highlanders. Jackie Jenkins suffered the defeat, allowing four runs, two earned, on four hits in two innings. Junior Stephanie Dameron and freshman Rachael Walters shut the Golden Flashes down over the final five inning on three hits, giving Radford the opportunity to comeback.

Binghamton 5, Radford 4

Radford rallied from a 4-0 deficit to tie the game in the fifth, but a leadoff home run by Caitlyn Friis in the bottom of the sixth lifted Binghamton to a 5-4 win. The Bearcats scored all five runs on three long balls.

Mantel was 2-for-4 with two doubles and two RBI. Agee matched her with a 2-for-4 effort and a RBI.

A leadoff home run by Bump and a three-run shot by Cadogan gave Binghamton a 4-0 lead in the bottom of the first before a single out was recorded.

The Highlanders got one run back in the third on a RBI double by Mantel that plated senior Ryndee Ruch and made it 4-1 Binghamton.

A three-run fifth evened the scored at 4-4 apiece. Mantel knocked in the first run with a double to fence in left and scored on squeeze by Eye. With two outs, Agee dumped a RBI single into center, scoring Naegele with the tying run.

The Highlanders had the go-ahead and the game-tying run on second in the sixth and seventh innings, respectively, but a steal attempt of third in both innings were thwarted. In the sixth, the first was a straight steal with no outs and runners on first and second. An inning later, it happened following a one-out double. The ball got away from the catcher, but she recovered and threw a strike to the bag.

Friis finished 2-for-3 for the Bearcats and Kate Price picked up the win in relief.

Jenkins suffered the defeat in relief, allowing a run over six innings after entering in the first after the four runs were scored. She struck out four and did not walk a batter.

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