Softball Starts Party at Palmer Invitational with Two Losses

Friday, February 27

Charlottesville, Va.

3 p.m.

Bucknell University

1-9

Virginia

16-1

Bucknell

Virginia

Photo by: Aiden Pelphrey

Softball Starts Party at Palmer Invitational with Two Losses

2/27/2026 9:54:00 PM | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va.- Bucknell (1-10) dropped two games on the first day of the Party at Palmer Invitational. The Orange & Blue fell 5-0 to No. 18 Virginia (16-1) and lost their fourth game in walk-off fashion in an 8-7 loss to previously winless Villanova (1-16). Brooke Popella smashed three doubles, tying the Bison single-game record set by Mary Pavlovich versus Penn State (2007) and Meghan Kovac at Mount St. Mary's (2018).

Virginia Recap

The No. 18 Cavaliers reinforced their ranking with a 5-0 victory over the Bison.

Sarah Zimmerman started in the circle for Bucknell. The Cavaliers bolted to a 3-0 lead in the first inning and never looked back. Jade Hylton led off the inning with a triple and Kassidy Hudson's grounder plated her. A fly out followed for the second out. Virginia generated a second wind with a Bella Cabral single and a Kelsey Hackett walk. A Reagan Hickey single scored the second run. Then, she and Hackett used a double steal to obtain the third tally.

Virginia added another run in the third inning. A leadoff walk, as usual, proved troublesome. Hackett's sacrifice bunt moved her to second and Hackett proved safe after Zimmerman's error. A pop-up and another walk set the table for a sacrifice fly.

Another sacrifice fly arrived in the fifth inning. Hackett led off with a walk and then stole second. She advanced to third on Hickey's single. Alex Call lifted a sacrifice fly to left field, scoring Hackett.

The Bison were unable to mount a late rally and Virginia completed its 16^th straight victory.

Villanova Recap

Bucknell and Villanova faced off in a back-and-forth affair that saw the Wildcats pull out an 8-7 triumph. Brooke Popella batted 3-of-4 with four RBIs. All three hits were doubles for the Bison junior.

0-16 Villanova behaved like Oklahoma in the opening inning. Avery Powers received the start and hit the first batter. Katherine Reed stepped up to the plate and homered over the center field fence.

The Wildcats added two more runs in the second inning. Powers obtained two quick outs but three straight hits by the Wildcats produced the two tallies.

The Bison struck back for three runs in the third frame. Zimmerman led off with a single and advanced to second on a wild pitch. Haley Speicher hit an infield single placing runners on the corners. Barbara Jo Coppola lifted a sacrifice fly to center field, scoring Zimmerman. Skye Perez walked. Brooke Popella slammed a double, scoring Speicher. Meadow Gambacurta reached on a fielding error that allowed Perez to dart home. Villanova changed pitchers and that move halted the Bucknell charge as Shea Malone hit into a double play.

Bucknell tied the game in the sixth inning. Popella led off the frame with her second double, advanced to third on a wild pitch, and then scored on another wild pitch.

Nova immediately reclaimed the lead in their sixth frame. Jacquelyn Cox singled and Mackenzie Waghorn sacrificed her to second base. The maneuver proved moot when Madison Ostrowski launched a two-run homer over the center field gall.

The seventh inning proved to be the capstone to the see-saw game. The inning started promising for Bucknell after a pitch hit Marissa Rapino but Zimmerman fouled out and Natalie Monroe flied out. Down to their final out, the Bison rallied. Coppola singled and Perez walked to load the bases. Popella delivered the goods with her bases-clearing double for a 7-6 Bison lead.

Powers started the final, fateful frame, inducing her tenth strikeout of the game. That was the high-water mark. Maranda Runco walked, Lilly St. Jean singled, and pitcher Lexi Kobryn won her game and the Wildcats' first victory of 2026 with a two-run double for the 8-7 win.

Up Next

Bucknell plays Michigan and has a rematch with Villanova tomorrow.