LITTLE RIVER, S.C. - The Cairn University softball team began the 2023 campaign with eight games on their Spring Break trip at the Fastpitch Dreams Classic in North Myrtle Beach this past week.
 
Cairn (1-7) got the week started off on the right foot in their first game on Tuesday, taking down the College of Mount Saint Vincent by a score of 11-4. The Dolphins scored the first two runs of the contest in the first inning, before Cairn proceeded to score eight unanswered runs over the next three frames to take firm control of the contest. Senior Theresa Beck (Lansdale, PA / Dock Mennonite Academy) paced the Highlander offense with a game-high three hits and a pair of RBIs and runs scored. Freshman Myiah Petroro (Long Island, NY / Liberty Online) added two hits and two runs in her collegiate debut. Senior Kacey Wees (Irwin, PA / Hempfield) picked up the win, going seven strong and scattering nine hits, four runs and striking out seven. Despite a 12-3 loss to Utica in the afternoon on Monday, Beck added another two-hit performance to pair with a run scored.
 
On Wednesday, Cairn fell 13-8 against Salem State in the morning before dropping a 9-0 decision to FDU-Florham in the afternoon slate. Four Highlanders finished with multi-hit efforts against Salem State, led by Beck with two hits and two RBIs and classmate Jenna Kenyon's (Clarksville, MD / River Hill) two hits and two runs. Sophomore Julia Bruestle (Abington, PA / Abington) and freshman Sydney Wright (Souderton, PA / Souderton) each added a pair of base knocks.
 
On Thursday, the Highlanders battled to a 14-8 defeat against McDaniel in the morning, before falling 10-4 against Maine-Farmington in the afternoon. Wees and classmate Emma Holmes (Newtown, PA / Council Rock North) each collected two hits against the Green Terror, while junior Adriana Shannon (Marlton, NJ / Cherokee) drove in a team-high three runs. Cairn put up all of their four runs in the first inning against Maine-Farmington. Beck posted another three-hit performance, while Petroro followed with two knocks.
 
On Friday, Cairn dropped a narrow 3-2 decision to Curry in the morning before falling 10-2 against Mount Aloysius in the final game of their trip in the afternoon. Cairn took an early 2-0 lead against Curry in the top of the first, highlighted by an RBI-single by Kenyon. Curry cut the deficit to 2-1 with a run in the second inning, before posting the two decisive runs in the bottom of the fifth frame. Petroro led the Cairn hitters with two hits and a run scored. Beck and Wees combined for three innings a-piece in the circle, each scattering five hits. Kenyon posted a two-for-two day at the plate with a run scored against Mount Aloysius to highlight the game for Cairn.
 
The Highlanders return to the field on Wednesday, March 22 when they travel to Phoenixville for a non-conference doubleheader with the University of Valley Forge starting at 4 p.m.