PHILADELPHIA— The University of Pennsylvania softball team dropped their first two games of the Purple Classic at Grand Canyon University earlier tonight.

Playing the University of New Mexico and Grand Canyon Univeristy, the Quakers fell to 1-7 on the season.

Final: New Mexico 4, Penn 1
Penn got offense going early, executing small ball in the first inning to get runners on base. Jade Montgomery knocked in Megan Huang on a fielder's choice, putting the Quakers ahead 1-0 at the bottom of the first.

Pitcher Kelly Zybura was able to keep the Lobos at bay until the fourth inning, giving up a solo homerun to left-center field against Jessica Deleon to even the score. New Mexico struck again with another homerun in the sixth inning, giving the Lobos a 3-1 lead.

New Mexico tacked on an insurance run in the seventh inning with an RBI single up the middle from Ashley Archuleta to score Marina Tinari. Though the Quakers got the bats going in the bottom of the inning, they were unable to score.

Final: Grand Canyon 9, Penn 1
Similar to their first game of the day, Penn got the bats moving in the top half of the first to get runners on base. Rachel Riley sent a single to center field, scoring Montgomery after an error by the center fielder allowed her and Utschig to advance. The Quakers left the top half of the first with a 1-0 lead.

The Lopes stepped into the box in their half of the first, starting the scoring with an RBI single from Emily Gonzalez to score Savannah Kirk. Jada Cooper then went yard over the left-field fence, adding two more runs for GCU in the inning. The Lopes led Penn at the end of the first, 3-1.

The offensive action in the second inning came courtesy of Gonzalez, running out the play on a fielding error, Willa Ford scoring. Cooper followed up with a single to center field, scoring Kirk to add another run for the Lopes.

Gonzalez stepped to the plate in the fourth inning, keeping her bat scorching hot with a rocket to center field, clearing the fence for a two-run shot. The Quakers were unable to stop the bleeding as Tinley Lucas knocked the ball through the gap on the right side for a single to bring in two more runs for the Lopes. At the end of the fourth, Grand Canyon had extended their lead, 9-1, putting the game just out of reach for Penn.

Up Next
Penn will face off against University of Nevada - Las Vegas and Utah State tomorrow afternoon at 4:30 p.m. EST and 7 p.m. EST respectively.

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

#FightOnPenn