BLOOMSBURG, Pa. - The Bloomsburg softball team split its midweek doubleheader against Felician Tuesday afternoon.

The Huskies (10-4) took a 5-0 lead in game one, hanging on despite comeback hopes from the Golden Falcons (5-17). Emma Little (Pittsburgh, Pa./Penn-Trafford) finished the first contest with three RBI, while Bella Culp (Harrisburg, Pa/Central Dauphin) hit her first career home run to round out the offense in the bottom of the fifth for a 5-3 result. 

Felician got its response in game two with a 2-1 decision in favor of the visitors. Culp put Bloomsburg on the scoreboard first with a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the third. The Golden Falcons got their answer with one swing in the top of the with a two-run home run. The pitcher's duel came down to the seventh inning, with the Huskies unable to create late-inning magic with the tying runner on base.

How It Happened:

Game One:
Bloomsburg rode the momentum and strength of Sowers through the early innings to jump out to a 4-0 lead after three innings of action. Sowers began her day by striking out two of the first three batters to put the ball in her team's hands. Culp aided her senior classmate with a leadoff triple over the head of the left fielder before crossing home plate on a sacrifice fly from Sarah Yamrick (Fort Myers, Fla./Bishop Verot).

Another two strikeouts from Sowers led into the second inning with her partner in the battery, Little, coming through with a one-out solo home run to center field to double the Huskies' advantage. The lead again doubled, jumping to 4-0, off the bat of Little. The senior catcher lined a hard-hit double past the left fielder and to the fence, allowing two runners to score before the final runner rounding third was thrown out at the plate to end the inning. 

The score would remain intact for the next inning and a half before the bat of Bloomsburg's slapper brought new life to her team. Stepping into the box to lead off the fifth inning, Culp stared down a 2-1 count and pulled a home run over the fence in left field for the middle infielder's first career long ball and a 5-0 edge. 

Felician gradually crept back into the ball game through the final two innings after the Golden Falcons' battles at the plate began to cause some fatigue on the Huskies' starter. Deep into the ball game, Felicain hit three solo home runs to cut the deficit to two, with a two-out single putting the tying run at the plate. The batter would not impact the final result, as Little threw out the would-be base stealer with a direct throw into Culp's glove for the tag and the win.

Game Two:
The second moved with pace as a result of the efforts of both pitchers despite a beginning period of no score. Kelly Eberly (Purcellville, Va/Homeschooled) kept Felican from getting a runner in scoring position through her first three innings of work. 

The left-handed pitcher's efforts allowed Bloomsburg to get on the board first in the bottom of the third. After a close play at second put two outs on the board, Emma Holmes (Mount Wolf, Pa./Northeastern Senior) raced into second base with her first career steal to give the Huskies a runner in scoring position with two outs. Culp, Bloomsburg's team leader in RBI, delivered once more. The senior skipped a well-struck ball past the glove at first base to give her side the lead and record her third extra-base hit of the afternoon. 

The Huskies' lead was short-lived after the first three at-bats in the top of the fourth. After a quick, two-pitch grounder for out number one, the Golden Falcons battled to draw a walk with a full count and put a runner on first base. Felician quickly turned on the next pitch, driving it to the opposite field, over the right-field fence, swinging the tides in favor of the visitors for a 2-1 score. 

Bloomsburg was off-balanced for much of the second contest, with the lineup's aggressive approach at the plate early in counts not paying off as anticipated. Several early ball counts resulted in limited stress on the Golden Falcons' pitcher and little time for the Huskies to build positive momentum. The Bloomsburg bats had signs of life with the hope to score in the bottom of the fifth, following singles from Reagan Wiest (Sunbury, Pa./Shikellamy) and Culp, which put runners on second with two outs. Yamrick stepped into the box, and on the third pitch of her at-bat, the first baseman laced a ball to her counterpart from Felician, resulting in a nifty snag at the corner to end the inning.

Bloomsburg's final chance to tie and retake the lead in game two came at the bottom of the seventh. With one out, Carly Wywoda (Dupont, Pa./Holy Cross) hit a hard shot to the Felician shortstop, with the collection process of the ball resulting in an errant throw. The Huskies could not convert in the end, with the next two batters going down in order and cementing the series split.

Numbers of Note
12 - Sowers' power on the mound showcased itself once more with another double-digit strikeout performance. The 12 punchouts on the day matched the senior's season-high this season for her second game with double digits. The senior pitcher has 27 career games with 10 or more strikeouts. 

1 - Bloomsburg has found itself in several one-run games this season, with game two on Tuesday being the latest edition. So far in 2025, the Huskies are 3-3 in games decided by one run. Bloomsburg is 0-3 this season when scoring one run or less.

15 - Culp's run production this year is a welcome surprise for the Huskies. The senior, in her last two seasons, has averaged 17 RBI. Through the infielder's first 14 games this year, she has driven in 15 runs. Culp is 11 RBI away from matching her career-high total set as a freshman and has driven in a run in four consecutive contests.

On The Horizon:
The Bloomsburg softball team returns to Jan Hutchinson Field on Friday, March 21, at 2:00 p.m. for its PSAC-opening doubleheader against Shepherd.