LANGHORNE, PA- The Highlanders hosted Penn State Abington in a non-conference matchup Wednesday afternoon.

The Highlanders turned to their ace, Krista Earl, in game one, and the sophomore did not disappoint. Earl shut out the Nittany Lions and allowed only two hits in the first seven innings. Unfortunately, PSU-Abington's Becca Dougherty was on top of her game as well, blanking the Highlanders and forcing the game to extra innings. With a runner placed on second to start the inning, both teams' hands were forced. PSU-Abington struck first with an RBI single in the top of the 8^th, but Earl buckled down to allow only one run. Haley Tinney got the Highlanders on board with a blast that hit the top of the fence and scored Hailey Wruck. Unfortunately, Tinney's shot came just short of a walk-off homerun and the game carried on into the top of the 9^th. PSU-Abington plated two runs in the top half of the 9^th, and unfortunately the Highlanders could not answer and the Nittany Lions took game one 3-1. Earl finished with 9 innings pitched, 1 ER, and 5 Ks, while Katelynn Reiss led the Highlanders offense with a 2-3 showing.
 
In game two, junior Meagan Maratita took the mound for the Highlanders, and was able to hold the Nittany Lions at just one run for the first three innings of the game. Cairn started off strong in game two, with an RBI single for freshman Olivia Nieto in the first inning to score Haley Tinney. The Highlanders mounted another huge rally in the third inning - Maratita started by scoring on an error; Wruck plated Paskitti on a hard ground-out to second; and Rolo cashed in two RBIs on a single to right center, giving the Highlanders a 5-1 lead. The Nittany Lions bounced back with two aggressive innings to tie the game at 5-5 in the fifth inning. The bats fell silent for the Highlanders, and the Nittany Lions took full advantage of the opportunity to pull ahead. Krista Earl took the mound in the sixth in an attempt to hold the score level, however, the Nittany Lions roared past the defense to earn six runs. Despite Cairn's best efforts to spur another rally, the Highlanders were only able to earn one more run, an RBI single by Maratita, and the game ended 11-6, Penn State Abington.
 
The Highlanders will return on Saturday to challenge the Centenary Cyclones in a CSAC doubleheader at 1:00 and 3:00 PM.