VILLANOVA, Pa.—The offense took a step forward with 10 hits and production throughout the lineup in the first game of a weekday doubleheader but Villanova (8-15) fell by a narrow score of 4-3 to Towson (7-12) at the Villanova Softball Complex on Wednesday afternoon. Later in the day the Wildcats flipped the script with a 4-3 victory to gain a split of the twin-bill in their second home date of the season. Graduate Paige Rauch (Windsor, N.Y.) and junior Chloe Smith (Sacramento, Calif.) led Villanova with two hits apiece at the top of the batting order.
 
It was a back and forth game from the start, as the Tigers jumped in front on a two-run home run with one out in the top of the first inning. Rauch and Smith were in the middle of a two-run rally by the Wildcats which tied the score at 2-2 in the home half of the third inning, but Towson got both runs back in the top of the fourth and held on to a slim lead the rest of the way. Eight different batters had at least one hit for the Wildcats, who also hit several line drives that were caught for hard-luck outs during the game.
 
Junior Sydney Hayes (Douglassville, Pa.) lined a single to center field leading off the bottom of the third and freshman left fielder Alexa Raphael (West Caldwell, N.J.) sacrificed her into scoring position. Rauch was up next and lofted a 1-1 pitch deep into the gap in left-center field which evaded the defense. Hayes scored on the hit and Rauch raced all the way around to third base with still just one out in the inning. She scored two pitches later on Smith's run-scoring groundout to short.
 
Mackenzie Lake hit a home run to left field in the top of the first inning and Briana Ramirez plated two runs with a two-out, two-run double in the top of the fourth. A one-out single and consecutive walks loaded the bases for Towson in the top of the fourth inning, but sophomore reliever Caroline Pellicano (Norristown, Pa.) struck out Nicole Kidwiler at the top of the lineup for the second out. Ramirez got ahead in the count, 2-1, and then lined a ball just inside the third base bag and down the left field line for two runs batted in.
 
It was still a 4-2 advantage for the Tigers when Raphael and Rauch set the table with consecutive leadoff singles off Julia Jackson (4-5, 3.75 ERA) in the bottom of the fifth inning. Smith worked the count full and then drilled a hard double down the left field line which scored Raphael and left the Wildcats with runners at second and third with nobody out. Rauch made a wide turn around third base on Smith's double before hitting the brakes as Towson quickly got the ball in. Each of the next two Villanova batters hit the ball hard, but junior Ally Jones (Brielle, N.J.) lined into a double play at third base and senior Megan Kern (Royersford, Pa.) hit an equally hard line drive to first base for the final out of the inning.
 
A leadoff single by freshman Kelsey White (Taunton, Mass.) in the sixth inning and a two-out single up the middle by Smith with two outs in the bottom of the seventh twice put the potential tying run aboard for the Wildcats, but each time Jackson made big pitches when she needed them to preserve the narrowest of leads. She scattered 10 hits and three earned runs while walking one and striking out two in a complete game effort.
 
White started in the circle and went the first three innings for Villanova, allowing three hits and two earned runs. Both runs and all three hits came in the top of the first inning before White settled down with two good innings to follow. She was followed by Pellicano (0-2, 1.75 ERA) and Rauch who tossed two innings of relief apiece. Rauch allowed just a single while striking out one over two scoreless frames.