NEW WINDSOR, N.Y. – The Mount Saint Mary College softball team dropped a pair of games to SUNY New Paltz on Wednesday in a non-conference double-header in New Windsor. The Knights (9-6-1) yielded 12 runs in each game, falling in the first contest, 12-5, and the second, 12-7.

The Knights struck first in game one as junior Lacey Kehlenbeck (Port Jervis, N.Y.) singled, stole second, moved to third on base hit by freshman Brittany O'Brien (Brooklyn, N.Y.), and then scored on a groundout by senior Jackie Governale (Bethpage, N.Y.).

The lead would be short-lived, however, as New Paltz answered with three runs in the top of the second. Senior Jillian Gallagher (Buchanan, N.Y.) delivered the big blow with a two-run double that made it 3-1 Hawks.

After tacking on a single run in the third and fourth frames, the Hawks added four more tallies in the fifth. New Paltz clobbered three run-scoring doubles in the inning, including a two-run double from Kristen Schork (Warwick, N.Y.) that ran the score to 9-1.

O'Brien delivered an RBI-single for the Knights in the bottom of the fifth to extend the game, but the Hawks would pile on three more runs. Junior Shelby Martin (New Paltz, N.Y.) launched a two-run homer to cap the inning. The Knights strung together four hits for three runs in the bottom of the sixth, but it would be too little, too late. The home side went quietly in the seventh to lose the opener, 12-5.

Senior pitcher Courtney Costello (Bayport, N.Y.) pitched four solid innings to collect the victory, while Gallagher came on in relief to pitch the final three innings and earn the save.

In game two, the Knights seemed to be in complete control after a five-run fourth that made the score, 7-1, in favor of the Mount. Senior Sarah Johnson (Montgomery, N.Y.) laced a two-run double in the inning.

New Paltz, however, would send 12 hitters to the plate in the fifth inning, an effort that resulted in nine runs. The Hawks banged out six hits in the frame and Gallagher's three-run homer served as the exclamation point to an offensive explosion.

The Knights would not score against New Paltz freshman relief pitcher, Emily Collazo (East Meadow, N.Y.), and the Hawks added two more runs in the top of the seventh for a 12-7 win.

For the Mount, Kehlenbeck finished the double-header with four hits (4-for-8), five runs scored, and a pair of RBIs. Johnson and freshman Ashley Peel (Shelton, Conn.) were both 3-for-7, with Johnson driving home three runs and Peel scoring three runs. O'Brien was 3-for-8 with a run and two RBIs, while Governale batted 2-for-8 with three RBIs.

With the postponement of Friday's double-header against Farmingdale, the Knights won't play again until Sunday at St. Joseph's College. The double-header is scheduled for a 1:00 p.m. start.