Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2
Photo gallery (by Dan Ceccacci)
JESSUP, Pa. - The University of Scranton softball team got the offense rolling early and often in a pair of out-of-conference games against Cazenovia on Wednesday, as the Royals swept a doubleheader, winning game one, 14-1 (in five innings), and game two, 7-4.
With the victories, Scranton evened their record up on the year to 7-7 overall.
Game One: Scranton 14, Cazenovia 1 (Five Innings) | Box Score
In game one, the Royals made quick work of Cazenovia, leaping out to an 8-0 lead after two innings, then adding six more runs in the bottom of the fourth to walk away with a 13-run victory in their first game of the afternoon.
Overall, Scranton's bats came alive in game one, as the Royals smacked 15 hits.
Leading the way was junior Angelica Titor (Bellerose Village, N.Y./Floral Park Memorial), who was a perfect 3-for-3 at the plate in the game with four RBI, her highest total in a game since the 2014 season. Included in Titor's game at the dish was a two-RBI double in the first inning that gave Scranton an early 4-0 lead.
Elsewhere, freshman Molly Hampsey (Tunkhannock, Pa./Tunkhannock) was 2-for-4 with two RBI, adding her first career triple in the win, while junior Kaitlin O'Sullivan (Bensalem, Pa./Nazareth Academy) and sophomore Shanna Schaeffer (Hopewell Junction, N.Y./John Jay) each posted two RBI in the victory. O'Sullivan was 1-for-2 with two runs scored, while Schaeffer was 1-for-3 with a run scored.
Rounding out the top offensive performers in the first game was junior Shannon Stricker (Morrisville, Pa./Conwell Egan), with was 2-for-4 with three runs scored.
In the pitching circle, the Royals allowed just five hits, as junior Emily Simon (Freehold, N.J./Red Bank Catholic) earned the victory after tossing two innings in relief, allowing just three hits.
Game Two: Scranton 7, Cazenovia 4 | Box Score
Game two was a much more competitive contest from the start, but the Royals once again used a strong offensive output to take the victory and complete the doubleheader sweep, as Scranton banged out 15 more hits in the second game.
After a scoreless two and a half innings, the Royals cracked a scoreless tie in the ballgame in the bottom of the third, as O'Sullivan knocked home Titor on an RBI sacrifice fly, and Schaeffer padded the lead with a two out, two-RBI double that scored Stricker and junior Jacqueline DeSarro (Bethlehem, Pa./Bethlehem Catholic) to make the score 3-0 entering the fourth.
There, Scranton added another run, as junior Christine Kiefer (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh) smacked an RBI single that scored junior Jenna Snyder (Thornwood, N.Y./Westlake) to give the Royals a 4-0 lead.
After a scoreless fifth, Cazenovia finally got on the board in the sixth, as a two-run home run slashed the Scranton lead to 4-2 entering the bottom of the inning.
In the bottom half of the sixth, Scranton scored three important runs to extend their lead out to 7-2. DeSarro and O'Sullivan each had RBI singles in the frame, while Stricker came home on a throwing error to give Scranton a five run lead entering the seventh.
In the final inning, Cazenovia didn't go down without a fight, scoring two runs to cut the Royals lead down to three. But, the comeback ended there, as a lineout to second base with a runner on ended the game, giving Scranton the doubleheader sweep.
Overall, the middle of Scranton's lineup did damage in game two, paced by O'Sullivan and Schaeffer, who each had two RBI in the win. O'Sullivan was a perfect 3-for-3 at the dish, while Schaeffer was 2-for-4.
Elsewhere, DeSarro was 2-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored, while Titor finished off a big day at the plate going 3-for-4 with two runs scored. Stricker rounded out the Royals who had multiple hits in the victory, going 2-for-4 with two runs scored.
In the circle, senior Jamie Hampsey (Tunkhannock, Pa./Tunkhannock) went to 3-4 overall after tossing five innings of three hit, shutout softball.
The University of Scranton softball team returns to action on Saturday, traveling to Catholic for a Landmark Conference doubleheader. Action gets underway in Washington, D.C. at 1 p.m.
--ROYALS--
