RALEIGH, N.C. – The Fairfield University softball opened the 2022 season with a split on the first day of the Wolfpack Classic, falling to host North Carolina State by a 5-2 score before posting an 11-6 victory over Mount St. Mary's in game two.
Haley Updegraff homered in the opener and added three more hits in the nightcap to highlight the Fairfield offense.
Allie Bridgman, who pitched the opener, registered three hits and hit a home run in the second game while
Evie Wright also added a trio of hits against Mount St. Mary's.
The Stags took the early lead against North Carolina State, scoring a single run in both the third and fourth innings.
Kasey Sekula drew a walk and was replaced by pinch runner
Ella Watson who was making her Fairfield debut. The freshman eventually scored when
Mikayla Rubin delivered an RBI single to left field, pushing the team's first run of the new season across home plate.
The lead doubled in the next inning when Updegraff drove a pitch directly over the center field fence to make the score 2-0. Bridgman was able to keep the host team off the scoreboard for the first four innings before the Wolfpack broke through in the fifth inning on a Randi Farricker single. Farricker was responsible for the tying run as well, hitting a long ball over the center field fence to make everything even at 2-2.
In the seventh inning, Bridgman allowed two runners to reach base before yielding to reliever
Sam Lindsay. North Carolina State ended the game in walk-off fashion when Carson Shaner delivered a three-run homer to finalize the score at 5-2.
The second game showcased even more offense with the Stags generating four runs in their first at-bat. After
Kaitlin Hoffman brought home the first run with a double, Bridgman followed with a three-run shot to left field that gave a comfortable lead to starting pitcher
Katie Kudlacik. Fairfield tacked on two more runs in the second inning, courtesy of Rubin's two-run single that increased the score to 6-0.
Mount St. Mary's chipped away at that sizable lead with a two-run homer in the third but that was quickly earned back after
Madison Robicheau laced a two-run single in the bottom of the frame and
Morgan Sylvestre chased home a run with a bunt to regain the large edge at 9-2. The visiting team tallied three runs in the fourth inning with a run-scoring single and a two-run base hit that made the game more measurable at 9-5.
Fairfield scored its final two runs of the game when Sylvestre recorded an RBi single and Updegraff followed with a run-scoring double to bring the score to 11-5. Kudlacik earned the win by striking out six hitters and scattering seven hits over her six innings.
Bailey Taylor pitched the final inning to close out Mount St. Mary's.
The Stags are back in action on Saturday with a pair of games, playing Lehigh University at 10 am and North Carolina State at 3 pm.
