WILKES-BARRE, PA – The Wilkes University softball team battled its cross-town rival King's College to a Middle Atlantic Conference Freedom (MAC Freedom) split Saturday afternoon to stay one game ahead of the Monarchs in the conference standings. King's recorded a 5-4 walk-off win in game one before Wilkes took game two by a 4-2 score.

Wilkes moved to 5-5 in the MAC Freedom with two series left in the regular season as the Colonels look to qualify the conference tournament. The Colonels are now 18-13 overall. King's dropped to 4-6 in the league and 14-13 overall.

The Colonels grabbed a 3-0 lead in the top of the third inning of game one with four hits. Jordyn Kondras (Willow Street, PA/Lampeter-Strasburg) reached with a one-out single up the middle. Caitlin Brown (Glen Cove, NY/Glen Cove) then moved her to second with a two-out single to left. Erin Cabry (York, PA/Central York) then drove in Kondras with a single to center and moved to second on the throw as Brown went to third. Sarah Gibson (Chico, CA/Pleasant Valley) then walked and Britny Jumalon (Torrance, CA/Torrance) doubled to left center to bring in Brown and Cabry.

The Monarchs got two unearned runs back in the bottom of the fifth inning but the Colonels increased their lead back to 4-2 when Gab Giordano (Moscow, PA/Holy Cross) hit a sacrifice fly to right that brought in Gracen Staunton (Kernersville, NC/Northwest Guilford) who had doubled to left and moved to third on a Jessie Smith (Millersville, MD/Severna Park) sacrifice bunt.

King's scored three runs on four hits to win the game 5-4 in the bottom of the seventh. Mindina Lieback's bases loaded walk pushed the winning run across with two outs.

Staunton went 6-plus innings allowing four runs (two earned) on eight hits and six walks. The junior struck out six. Rhiannon Aurand (Avondale, PA/Avon Grove) suffered the loss after the freshman entered after King's made the score 4-3 with no outs in the seventh.

Kondras (3-for-3), Brown (2-for-4) and Staunton (2-for-3) had multi-hit games while Jumalon went 1-for-3 with two RBI's.

Wilkes looked to rebound in game two and started well. Brown doubled to left and then scored on a Cabry double to right center. Staunton then moved Cabry to third with a single and Cabry came into score on an RBI sacrifice bunt by Sarah Gibson (Chico, CA/Pleasant Valley). The sacrifice hit was the 22nd of Gibson's career as she moved into first place in the Wilkes record book past Sarah Birchmeier (Cherry Hill, NJ/Cherry Hill East).

The score remained the same until the fifth inning. Giordano singled to left center to lead off the inning and moved all the way to third when Brown was out a first. Cabry then hit a sacrifice fly to left field to bring in Giordano and put Wilkes up 3-0. King's answered with two unearned runs in the bottom half of the fifth. Celine Podlesney (Hazle Twp., PA/Hazleton) was able to get Nicole Kirse to pop out with the bases loaded to end the Monarchs threat.

Kondras helped the Colonels to an insurance run in the top of the seventh when she reached with a one-out single to left center. The sophomore then stole second and advanced to third on Giordano's fly out. Brown then knocked an RBI double to bring in Kondras and make the score 4-2.

Aurand pitched the final two innings and held the Monarchs scoreless to pick up her first career save. She allowed three hits and had one strikeout. Podlesney went the first five innings allowing two runs (zero earned) on six hits and four walks. The junior had one strikeout and improved her record to 7-5 with the win.

Brown went 3-for-4 with an RBI and run scored and Haley Boyd (Escalon, CA/Escalon) finished 2-for-3. Cabry also contributed at the plate with a 1-for-2 effort and added two RBI's one run scored and a walk.

The Colonels will return to the Ralston Athletic Complex to face Maywood University on Wednesday, April 17 at 4:00 p.m. for a non-conference doubleheader.