03/07/07

The Saints fell behind early in game one of a doubleheader with the Scots from Macalester College on Wednesday night in Rosemount's Irish Dome and never recovered in a 4-1 loss.

Macalester jumped on Saints starter Amy Jansen for two runs in the bottom of the first as the first two batters reached base and came around to score.

Those were all the runs the Scots would need as the Saints threatened often but couldn't cash in.

A lead-off single by Chelsey Weiss, followed by a stolen base looked like a promising start to the game for St. Scholastica but Macalester starter Olivia Abbot struck out the next two batters and coerced Rilee Dawson into an inning-ending ground out to second base to end the threat and leave Weiss stranded at second.

Following Macalester's opening pair of runs, first Jansen then Abbot worked through easy second innings that kept the score at 2-0 in favor of the Scots.

Kris Peterson's lead-off walk turned into an unearned run for the Saints in the third, cutting Macalester's lead in half when she later scored on an error by the Scots' second baseman that put Weiss on first with Robin Lake at second after her single to right field.

With one out, an Abbot wild pitch moved Lake to third and Weiss to second and the Saints were ready to wrest the lead away from Macalester but once again Abbot worked out of the jam and left a pair of Saints stranded on the base paths.

The fourth inning started out well for the Saints as both Mary Jo McNamee and Kayla Kahilainen led off with back to back singles and once again they were threatening to take the lead.

Jansen followed Kahilainen with a sharp liner to Scots shortstop Katie Grudnowski who was able to quickly flip to second, doubling off McNamee to lessen the threat. Abbot, living dangerously for the third of four innings, got out of the inning without surrendering a run on a slow roller to first that closed out the Saints threat.

Macalester picked up two more runs in the bottom of the fifth and Abbot shut down the Saints over the final two innings to send the Saints to defeat.

Jansen took the loss for St. Scholastica (0-3) surrendering four runs on only six hits and two walks with two strikeouts over six innings of work, while Abbot picked up the win for Macalester (1-0) after allowing one run on five hits and a walk, and striking out seven in six innings.

Game 2 recap -- Game 2 box score