Ewing, NJ … The College of New Jersey softball team rallied in game two to earn a split with SUNY Cortland on Saturday afternoon in Dr. June Walker Field.
 
The Lions (7-5) dropped the opener to the Red Dragons (8-6) in eight innings, 2-1. They came back with a 5-1 triumph in the nightcap to secure their first home victory of the season.
 
Juniors Madison Levine (Oakland, NJ/Indian Hills), Jess McGuire (Stockton, NJ/Hunterdon Central) and sophomore Jess Santelli (Hillsborough, NJ/Hillsborough) each had three hits on the day. Levine and freshman Annalise Suitovsky (Warren Twp., NJ/Watchung Hills) both homered in the double header.
 
Game1: SUNY Cortland 2  TCNJ 1 (8 innings)
 
In the opener, Lions starter Sam Platt (Cedar Grove, NJ/Mount Saint Dominic Academy) received the tough-luck decision, pitching all eight innings and surrendering just two earned runs and striking out five.
 
Cortland got on the board in the second when Skyler Hoyt hit a towering home run to left field to put the Red Dragons up, 1-0.  That lead held until the bottom of the fifth. Suitovsky connected with a line shot that cleared the center field fence for her first career home run with the Lions.
 
Platt came up clutch to work out of a tight jam in the sixth. Red Dragon center fielder Kelly O'Gorman reached on an error and raced to third when Mikayla Shade doubled to left-center. With runners on second and third and nobody out, Platt induced two infield pop-ups and then a strikeout swinging to end the threat.
 
The game remained tied through seven and the Red Dragons plated the go-ahead run in the eighth. Shortstop Andrea Schoonmaker doubled to left-center to open the inning. She tagged up and advanced to third on a fly ball down the right field line. Schoonmaker broke on contact on a ground ball to first base and crossed home plate with what turned out to be with game-winning run.

Game 2: TCNJ 5  SUNY Cortland 1
 
Freshman right-hander Kristen Barrera (Bayonne, NJ/Bayonne), sophomore Sara Bielamowicz (Lawrenceville, NJ/Lawrence) and Platt combined to shut down the Cortland offense in the second game. Barrera pitched three and one-third scoreless innings before handing the ball over to Bielamowicz in the fourth. She brought the Lions into the sixth before Platt returned to the mound to shut the door on the Red Dragons.
 
TCNJ scored three in the third to take command of the contest. An RBI-single by McGuire put the Lions on the board. A fielder's choice by Gaby Bennett (Hamilton, NJ/Steinert) and a run-scoring single by Santelli made it a 3-0 cushion.
 
McGuire delivered her second RBI-single of the game in the fifth. That stretched the host lead to 4-0.
 
The Lions were touched for a run in the sixth, but got it back when Levine blasted a solo homer to center. It was her first of the season and fourth of her career.
 
Platt retired the side in order in the seventh to secure the win and earned her first save of the season.
 
The Lions had their Sunday double header with Ithaca College cancelled due to projected storms. TCNJ will return to action on Wednesday, March 29^th when they visit Cabrini College for a double header starting at 3 p.m.