Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2
Photo gallery (by Dan Ceccacci)
JESSUP, Pa. - Junior Marisa Ciriello (Hicksville, N.Y./Hicksville) had eight combined RBI - including six RBI in game two - leading the University of Scranton softball team to a non-conference doubleheader sweep of Keystone on Wednesday afternoon at the Jessup Youth Sports Complex by scores of 5-1 and 12-9.
The set also served as the program's Strikeout Cancer Games, in which donations that will go toward cancer awareness were collected throughout the contest.
With the victories, Scranton is now 10-10 on the year.
Game One: Scranton 5, Keystone 1 | Box Score
In the first game, the Royals used a four-run fourth inning to pull away, as pitchers sophomore Morgan Rentzheimer (Laurys Station, Pa./Parkland) and junior Emily Simon (Freehold, N.J./Red Bank Catholic) kept the Keystone offense at bay for the entirety of game one.
In the first inning, Scranton took the early 1-0 lead, as junior Shannon Stricker (Morrisville, Pa./Conwell Egan) roped an RBI single up the middle that scored fellow junior Christine Kiefer (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh). That lead remained intact for Scranton until the bottom of the fourth, where a four-run outburst put the Royals up for good at 5-0.
Stricker began the scoring in the fourth with a bang, hitting a leadoff solo home run to make it a 2-0 game. The round-tripper was the second of the season for the junior and the sixth of her career at Scranton.
With one out and runners on second and third, Ciriello began her RBI barrage for the day after ripping a two-RBI single up the middle that made it a 4-0 game. The scoring for the inning was completed with two outs, as sophomore Kaitlyn Brogan (Oreland, Pa./Saint Basil Academy) had an RBI single up the middle to give Scranton a five-run lead.
Although the Giants added a run in the top of the seventh, the five-run cushion was more than enough for starting pitcher Rentzheimer and reliever Simon, who combined to scatter just five hits in the win. Overall, Rentzheimer earned the victory in the circle, moving to 4-4 on the year.
Overall, Stricker ended game one going 2-for-2 with two RBI and a run scored, while Ciriello went 2-for-3 with two RBI. Junior Kaitlin O'Sullivan (Bensalem, Pa./Nazareth Academy) rounded out the top performers for Scranton in game one, going 2-for-3 with a run scored.
Game Two: Scranton 12, Keystone 9 | Box Score
The second game of the afternoon was a slugfest that saw Scranton hold off a late charge by Keystone to complete the sweep with a three-run victory.
After four innings, Scranton looked poised to end the game quickly after opening up an 8-1 lead. But, in the top of the fifth and sixth, Keystone made the game interesting, scoring six runs combined in both frames (four in the sixth inning alone) to chop the Scranton lead all the way down to 8-7 entering the bottom of the inning.
There, Scranton put away Keystone for good with four runs of their own to take a 12-7 lead into the final inning. Keystone was still able to muster two more runs across the plate in the top of the seventh, but the comeback stopped their, as the Royals bashed 14 hits to pull out a three-run victory.
Overall, Ciriello was dominant at the plate in the second game with her 3-for-4, six-RBI performance.
She got her game started in the first inning with an RBI single with two outs that gave the Royals an early 3-0 lead, then followed that up by smacking a three-run home run over the left center field fence in the third to give Scranton a 6-1 lead. The long ball was the third of Ciriello's career.
The final RBI of the day for Ciriello were important, as a two-RBI single in the sixth put Scranton up for good at 10-7.
Elsewhere, junior Jenna Snyder (Thornwood, N.Y./Thornwood) was just as impressive at the dish in game two, also going 3-for-4 with two RBI and a run scored. Included in Snyder's game was an RBI double in the sixth inning that gave the Royals their final run of the game.
Rounding out the top performances at the plate in the second game was Stricker, who was 2-for-3 with an RBI (on a triple) and two runs scored. In the circle, senior Jamie Hampsey (Tunkhannock, Pa,/Tunkhannock) earned the win, allowing three runs in six innings of work.
The University of Scranton softball team returns to action on Saturday, as they host Juniata in a Landmark Conference doubleheader at the Jessup Youth Sports Complex. The Senior Day set gets underway at 1 p.m.
--ROYALS--
