EDWARDSVILLE, PA – The Wilkes University Colonels continued their 2021 season by hosting the Misericordia Cougars for a Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) Freedom doubleheader at the Ralston Athletic Complex Tuesday night.
 
The Colonels (2-6) struggled with errors through both games, falling 4-2 to the Cougars (9-1) in the first game, before dropping the second game 6-2.
 
The Colonels sent out senior Rachel Pritchard (Wilmington, DE/Concord) to pitch the first game.  The bats remained quiet through the first two frames as neither team got on the board until the 3rd.  Misericordia struck first in the top due to a throwing error by the Colonels, before first year Marissa Pick (Watsontown, PA/Warrior Run) responded with a solo home run in the bottom of the inning.  The teams exchanged runs in the 4th inning as well, with the Cougars hitting a single to bring in a run in the top half before the Colonels took advantage of a fielding error to tie up the game once more. 
 
The next three innings went by scoreless before the Cougars found the winning runs off of a fielding error in the top of the 7th.  The Navy and Gold found no response to this in the bottom of the frame to drop the first game.
 
Junior AJ Bryfogle (Easton, PA/Easton Area) stepped onto the mound for the Colonels in game two.  The teams exchanged unearned runs in the first inning, with the Colonels taking advantage of a wild pitch to send a runner home.  The Cougars broke the game open steadily, scoring five unanswered runs in the 2nd through 4th frames.  A two out single in the 2nd netted the first run, before Misericordia netted two unearned runs in the third and a two-run home run in the fourth
 
Junior Rhia Aurand (Avondale, PA/Avon Grove) took over pitching duties in the fourth inning and shut down the Cougars offense for the rest of the night, allowing only a pair of hits while throwing a strikeout to finish the game for the Colonels.  A fielding error by the Cougars in the bottom of the sixth gave the Colonels offense some life to make it 6-2.  The Navy and Gold managed to get two runners on base with two outs in the seventh, but were unable to convert the runners into a comeback opportunity and fell 6-2 to Misericordia.
 
Pritchard pitched a complete game in the first tilt, allowing only a single earned run and throwing two strikeouts.  Aurand allowed no runs taking over in relief duties in the second game.  Junior infielder Erin Cabry (York, PA/Central York) went 3 for 3 at the plate in the nightcap.
 
The Colonels travel to Misericordia Thursday to start April with a road doubleheader at Dallas, Pa.  First pitch is scheduled for 3:00 p.m.