PHILADELPHIA— The University of Pennsylvania softball team opened their season today in Elon, N.C. with split results against Morgan State and Elon.

The Quakers opened their season against the Morgan State Bears this morning, winning 7-2 with a complete game from Ainsley Pemberton. The Red and Blue had a short turnaround before facing the Elon Phoenix this afternoon, falling 10-1 after five innings of play.

Final: Penn 7, Morgan State 2
The Bears stepped up to the plate to start the game, Pemberton earning a strikeout against leadoff batter Rylee Hyde before allowing a walk for Maya Alvarez. Morgan State then jumped on the board first with a two-run shot from Victoria Fletcher to give them the early lead. The home run was the only offense that the Bears would generate in the first, making way for Penn to play some offense.

Down two outs in the bottom of the first, Jade Montgomery stepped into the box for the Quakers. Sending the ball to right center, Montgomery opened the scoring for Penn with a home run of her own, closing the gap to 2-1. With a flyout from Rachel Riley, the Red and Blue grabbed their gloves and took the field for the second.

Pemberton, earning four strikeouts in the second and third innings, kept Morgan State at bay as Penn generated some additional offense in the bottom of the third. Alexis Youngren led off the inning with a double, advancing to third on a single hit by Gigi Ganje. Ganje then stole second base, where Youngren was picked off at third. With one out in the inning, Madison Bauerle sent a single through the left side, putting runners on the corners as Jade Montgomery stepped up to the plate again. Sending a fly ball to center field, Ganje tagged up and was able to come home to level the score, 2-2. Rachel Riley stepped up and hit into a fielder's choice, ending the inning.

Penn's offense resumed in the bottom of the fourth, as Dani Freer was hit by a pitch and then stole second. Maia Hartley singled up the middle, sending Freer to third and putting runners on the corners again for the Quakers. Hartley quickly stole second, putting two in scoring position for Abbie Stellrecht at the plate. Stellrecht sent a fly ball to left field, allowing Freer to tag up and advance home, putting the Red and Blue ahead. Hartley was called out advancing to third, finishing the inning with a 3-2 lead.

Youngren took first after being hit by a pitch to open the fifth inning. Ganje kept her bat hot with a double, putting runners on second and third for Bauerle. She reached base on a fielder's choice, allowing Ganje to advance to third as Youngren was thrown out at home. Montgomery was hit by a pitch during her at bat, moving Bauerle to second and loading the bases for Riley. Singling through the right side, moving Montgomery to third and scoring Ganje and Bauerle. Utschig stepped into the box after a pitching change for the Bears, hitting into a fielder's choice. Montgomery was thrown out at home, ending the inning. Adding two runs in the fifth, the Quakers increased their lead to 5-2.

Ganje highlighted the sixth, batting in Youngren with a double and stealing third and home on wild pitches. The Quakers exited the sixth inning with a 7-2 lead, leaving the game in Pemberton's hands.

Throwing a total of 106 pitches, Pemberton had a fantastic showing. Earning nine strikeouts in seven innings, the freshman made the most of her debut in Penn's first win of the season.

Final: Elon 10, Penn 1
The away team in this matchup, Penn stepped up to the plate first. They got off to a slow start, leaving two on base before taking the field. Kelly Zybura started in the circle for the Quakers, giving up a single to leadoff hitter Greta Hessenthaler. Allee Seering then drove a ball deep into left center to put the Phoenix up 2-0 in the bottom of the first. After Gabi Schaal grounded out, Chloe Hatzopoulos singled to center field. Kaitlyn Wells sent one through the left side, advancing Hatzopoulos to second as Wells took first. The two then advanced on a wild pitch, putting two runners in scoring position for Teagan Baulsir. She popped the ball up to shortstop, allowing Hatzopoulos to tag and score. At the end of the first, Elon led Penn 3-0.

The Quakers went down in order to start the second, making way for the Phoenix to add on to their lead. Lani Wyrick led off with a single, advancing to second on a single by Reagan Hartley. Hessenthaler laid down a sacrifice bunt, moving the runners to second and third. Seering sent a single up the middle, taking second as Wyrick came home and Hartley moved to third. A throwing error by Gigi Ganje allowed Hartley to score and Seering to take third. Schaal stepped into the box, grounding out to shortstop, but scoring Seering on the play. With a groundout to close the inning, the Phoenix doubled their lead over the Quakers, 6-0.

Alexis Youngren took one for the team to start the third inning, earning first after being hit by a pitch. Ganje fouled out, but Youngren was also called out on the play, unable to get back to first. Madison Bauerle was patient through her at-bat, earning a walk to keep the inning alive. Morgan Sullivan, pinch hitting for Jade Montgomery, popped a ball into left field that ended the offensive half of the inning for the Red and Blue.

The Quakers made a couple of defensive moves to start the bottom of the third, moving Sullivan to right field and Ella Utschig to first. Wells earned a walk off Zybura, stealing second not long after. The Phoenix went down in order after, sparking some hope for Penn as they entered the fourth.

Rachel Riley led off the inning, reaching first on a fielding error by Hessenthaler. Utschig hit into a fielder's choice, sending Riley back to the dugout as she took first. During Dani Freer's at-bat, Utschig stole second, then advancing to third on a throwing error by Peyton Fitzpatrick. Freer sent the ball to right field, caught for an out, allowing Utschig to tag up and come home. Bases clear, Maia Hartley earned a walk to keep the inning alive. The end of the inning came as Abbie Stellrecht fouled out to first. Penn closed out the inning with one on the board, making the score 6-1 halfway through the fourth.

Senior Payton Bean took over pitching for the Quakers to start the bottom of the fourth. Hartley sent the ball to left field for a single, bringing Hessenthaler to the plate. She knocked the ball to right field for a triple, bringing Hartley home to score. Seering hit a fly ball to left field, allowing Hessenthaler to tag and score. Hatzopoulos launched a rocket to center field, making the score 9-1 with two outs in the fourth. Wells matched Hatzopoulos with a homer of her own, adding on for the Phoenix. Sullivan relieved Bean at pitcher, as Roisin Keenan entered the game in right field. Baulsir singled after the pitching change, but the Red and Blue were able to get the last out of the inning off a fly ball from Fitzpatrick. At the end of the fourth, Elon led Penn 10-1.

The Quakers stepped into the batter's box to start the fifth inning, Youngren leading off. She popped the ball up to shortstop, marking the first out of the inning. Ganje stepped into the box next, fouling out in left field. Bauerle, with the game on her bat, earned a walk to keep the game alive. Sullivan poked the ball to shortstop, she and Baurle reaching base safely as a result of a fielding error by Wyrick. Riley stepped up to the plate, but just got under the ball, sending it to left field for the final out of the game.

Up Next
The Quakers take the field again against Morgan State tomorrow morning (10:30 a.m.) before a rematch versus Elon at 1:00 p.m.

For the latest on Penn Softball, follow @Penn_Softball on X and Instagram, and on the web at PennAthletics.com.   

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