FORT MYERS, Fla. – The University of Pittsburgh at Bradford softball team dropped a pair of games on Saturday evening at the Player Development Complex in Fort Myers.
The Panthers fell 6-3 to Salem State in the opener and then dropped the finale 8-4 to Edgewood.
Amber Fox went 2-4 in the first game and reached the 100 hit milestone for her career.
"It was a disappointing day for us today," said Pitt-Bradford head coach Tina Phillips. "We weren't overly sharp today, but if we learn from our mistakes this early in the season I can live with it. Maddy had a great day at the plate and I am happy for Amber for getting her 100th hit."
Maddy Hillery led the Panthers with two hits and two RBI while Liz Dzurisin added two hits and drove in a run. Leann Bell and Fox added two hits in the game one loss.
Cassidy Lewis took the loss in the first game, despite allowing just two earned runs on four hits over five innings of work. Summer Andrews tossed a scoreless inning of relief in the loss.
Hillery gave the Panthers a 1-0 lead with an RBI single right back up the middle.
The lead didn't last long as Salem State scored two runs in the second, two more in the third and two in the third to extend its lead to 6-1 after three innings.
Hillery had an RBI groundout and Dzurisin ripped an RBI single up the middle, but it was too little, too late, as the Panthers fell 6-3 to the Vikings in game one.
Emily Fair drove in two runs in the loss to Edgewood while Hillery added two more hits and Taylor Collins drove in one run in the loss.
Collins was credited with a no-decision in the circle, allowing two runs on eight hits while striking out three and walking just one. Summer Andrews was hit with her first loss of the season after giving up six hits in 1.1 innings of work.
"Taylor pitched well enough to win in the second game, but we just didn't take advantage of our scoring opportunities by leaving the bases loaded twice," Phillips said. "The top of our lineup has to be more productive if we are going to be successful."
The Panthers jumped out to an early 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second when Hillery scored from third on an Edgewood fielding error.
Pitt-Bradford added two more in the third when Lewis took third on a wild pitch and then took off for home on a throwing error. Fair followed with an RBI single through the left side to extend the Panther's lead to 3-0 after three.
Edgewood got on the board in the top of the fifth with one run and then picked up three more in the sixth and then four more in the top of the seventh on a grand slam to take an 8-3 lead into the home half.
Collins lined an RBI single to right, plating Hillery and bringing the Panthers to within 8-4. However, the Panthers comeback effort came up short in an 8-4 loss.
The Panthers return to action Sunday morning at nine against U-Mass Dartmouth and then play Augusburg College at one in Naples, Fla.
