LITTLE RIVER, S.C. – The Penn State Altoona softball team returned to action in the Fastpitch Dreams Spring Classic on Wednesday, going up against Martin Luther College and Delaware Valley University at the North Myrtle Beach Sports Complex.

The Lions came back to win game one by a score of 10-7 over Martin Luther (1-7), but Penn State Altoona's bats were quieted in a 2-0 loss to Delaware Valley (7-1).

Game One: Penn State Altoona 10, Martin Luther 7

The Lions and Knights found themselves tied at 7-7 through four-and-a-half innings, but Penn State Altoona hopped ahead and put up zeroes the rest of the way to defeat Martin Luther by three.

Alexa Baney (Snow Shoe, PA/Bald Eagle) went 2-for-3 for the Lions with two runs scored, one RBI, one walk, and one stolen base. Madison Kennedy (Williamsburg, PA/Central) was 2-for-3 with a double, a run, and an RBI.

Riley Best (Coalport, PA/Glendale) belted her first home run of the season and finished the game with three RBI, two runs, and a walk. Gracie Wilt (Altoona, PA/Altoona) had a double and two RBI.

Kennedy made the start at pitcher and took a no-decision after she tossed 4 2/3 innings and yielded three earned runs. Best got the win, her second victory of the season, with 2 1/3 spotless innings in relief.

Martin Luther scored the game's first run in the top of the first inning when Kiara Humann led off with a single and later scored on a passed ball. But the Lions tied things up in the bottom of the second, when Autumn Fabian (Edgewater, MD/South River) delivered an RBI groundout to score Wilt from third.

The Knights jumped back in front on a Chloe Berg RBI single up the middle in the top of the third, but Penn State Altoona answered quickly with three runs in the bottom half of the inning. With the bases loaded and no outs, Kennedy was hit by a pitch to bring Audrey Walker (Mill Hall, PA/Central Mountain) home and tie the score at 2-2. A wild pitch during the next at-bat allowed Karli Storm (Chest Springs, PA/Cambria Heights) to score, and Wilt's groundout to third plated Best to make it 4-2.

Martin Luther came back with three runs of its own in the top of the fourth, capitalizing on three Lion errors in the inning. Chloe Koschnitzke came home on a fielding error, and two more Knights' runs scored on a throwing error during the next play to put Martin Luther back on top, 5-4.

Penn State Altoona reclaimed the lead with a long ball in the bottom of the fourth. Baney singled down the left-field line with one out, and Storm walked with two outs to put two aboard for the Lions. Best followed with a three-run homer to left-center, propelling Penn State Altoona to a 7-5 lead.

The Knights tied the game again in the top of the fifth, as a Koschnitzke RBI single and a wild pitch brought the game even, 7-7.

The Lions seized the lead back for good in the bottom half of the fifth, as RBI singles from Baney and Walker gave Penn State Altoona a 9-7 advantage. The Lions padded their lead in the sixth on a Wilt RBI double to center, and the softball team ended their first game of the day by securing a three-run victory.

Game Two: Delaware Valley 2, Penn State Altoona 0

The Lions struggled to get the bats going in their second game of the day, managing just three hits in a two-run loss to Delaware Valley (7-1).

Storm went 2-for-3 at the plate, while Baney also had a hit.

Josselyn Nau (Bellefonte, PA/Bellefonte) took the tough-luck loss in a complete game, going all seven innings and allowing just one earned run.

Delaware Valley broke a scoreless tie in the top of the fifth when Amelia Funston doubled with one out and then scored on an infield error. The Aggies made it 2-0 in the top of the sixth on a two-out base hit up the middle from Tori Bockrath.

Next up, Penn State Altoona softball faces the University of Valley Forge and Albion College tomorrow, Thursday, March 12, at the North Myrtle Complex.