CLERMONT, FLA. – The Cortland softball team suffered its first loss of the season as a late comeback came up just short in a 4-3 setback to Nichols College. The Red Dragons bounced back to defeat Mitchell College, 14-6 in five innings, and is now 5-1 on the season. Cortland has Wednesday off before resuming its Florida schedule Thursday versus Arcadia and Gettysburg.
 
Nichols 4, Cortland 3
 
Nichols (2-3) took a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the second on a Kyla Felicani bases-loaded walk and a Riley Chartier two-run single. Cortland scored in the top of the third on a Shannon Scotto (Putnam Valley/Lakeland) RBI single. In the bottom of the fourth, Erin Gour led off for the Bison with a homer off the left field foul pole to make it 4-1.
 
Cortland scored in the top of the fifth on Kim Westenberg's (Massapequa Park/Massapequa) RBI infield single to pull the Red Dragons within 4-2. A diving catch in the sixth by left fielder Felicani on a shallow fly ball ended a Cortland threat with runners on first and second.
 
Cortland loaded the bases with no outs in the top of the seventh on a Lainie Ornstein (Yorktown Heights/Yorktown) walk, a wild pitch, a Scotto infield single and a Westenberg walk. Olivia Pedro entered in relief and allowed a Brooke Scheibe (Sayville) sac fly to drive in a run. Nichols threw out Scotto trying to advance to third on a potential wild pitch for the second out and, following a Tori Reich (Cornwall) walk, Pedro induced a groundout to second to end the game and earn the save.
 
Reich finished 2-for-3 with a walk and Scotto went 2-for-4 with an RBI. Ornstein was 1-for-3 with a walk and two runs scored. Westenberg fell to 3-1 with the loss, allowing five hits and four runs, three earned, with one walk and three strikeouts. Chelsea Indyk won for Nichols with five innings of seven-hit ball. She gave up two unearned runs, struck out two and walked none. Gour went 2-for-3 with an RBI and two runs scored.
 
Cortland 14, Mitchell 6 (5 inn.)
 
Cortland exploded for 17 hits in its win over Mitchell, which was called after Cortland took an eight-run lead in the bottom of the fifth. The Red Dragons trailed 2-1 before scoring five runs in the bottom of the second. The lead grew to 10-2 after four innings, and Mitchell (1-5) briefly staved off the eight-run rule with a four-spot in the top of the fifth. Cortland, however, scored four times in the bottom of the fifth.
 
Westenberg was 3-for-3 with a double, walk, two RBI and three runs scored. Reich finished 2-for-3 with a walk, three RBI and two runs, Emily Stavola (Somers) was 2-for-3 with a walk and two RBI, Kaeli McAnally (Islip) finished 2-for-3 with a double and two RBI and Ornstein ended 2-for-4, including an infield RBI hit that ended the game. Katie Stork (Massapequa) added a two-run single during the four-run fifth.
 
Olivia DeCicco and Brooke Whitmarsh each were 2-for-3 with two RBI, with DeCicco also drawing a walk, and Gemma Landry went 2-for-3 with a walk. All nine starters for the Mariners recorded at least one hit as the team finished with 12 hits.
 
McKenna Barry (Clifton Park/Shenendehowa) won for the Red Dragons after going the first four and a third innings. She allowed six runs, five earned, on 12 hits with four strikeouts and two walks. Kaeli Murtagh (Montgomery/Pine Bush) entered in the fifth with the score 10-6 and two runners on base. She retired the two batters she faced on a strikeout and groundout and earned the save. Emily Reynolds took the loss for Mitchell, allowing five runs over an inning and a third.