Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2
SCRANTON, Pa. - The University of Scranton softball team rolled to an 8-0 win in game one in five innings, then hung on for a 5-4 victory in game two to sweep a non-conference doubleheader from Hunter on Saturday at Magis Field.
With the victories, Scranton improved to 23-9 overall. Before the start of game one, the program honored the three members of their 2019 senior class: Taylor Septer (Langhorne, Pa./Villa Joseph Marie), Cyan Scarduzio (Ossining, N.Y./Ossining), and Molly Hampsey (Tunkhannock, Pa./Tunkhannock).
Game One: Scranton 8, Hunter 0 - Box Score
In the first game of the day, the Royals coasted to an eight-run victory, as sophomore Jennifer Sweeney (Dunmont, N.J./Dumont) led Scranton both at the plate and in the pitching circle in the win.
In the win, Scranton broke the game open in the bottom of the third, scoring five runs to balloon a 1-0 lead into a 6-0 edge after three innings. Then, in the fifth inning, Sweeney ended the game with one swing, as she lifted a two-run homer over the center field fence that cliched an eight-run win in five for the Royals.
Meanwhile, Sweeney was just about dominant in the pitching circle in the ballgame, as she tossed a one-hit, shutout to move to 10-5 overall for the year. Sweeney struck out two and allowed just one walk in the victory, as well.
At the dish, Sweeney ended the game going 3-for-3 with three RBI on a home run and a double, with two runs scored. Sweeney's fifth-inning home run was her sixth of the season, as well.
Elsewhere, sophomore Mackenzie Duffy (Wilkes-Barre, Pa./Lackawanna Trail) was 2-for-3 with two runs scored, and junior Megan Zinn (Bridgewater, N.J./Bridgewater-Raritan) was also 2-for-3 with two RBI and two runs scored.
Game Two: Scranton 5, Hunter 4 - Box Score
In the second game of the afternoon, the Royals went ahead late, then held on in the seventh to collect their eighth game of the year at home and record their seventh doubleheader sweep of the 2019 campaign.
After falling behind, 2-0, in the top of the second inning, freshman Heather Alich (Bath, Pa./Northampton Area) tied the game up with a swing, as her two-run home run in the bottom of the frame tied things back up at 2-2. For Alich, the home run was her second of her rookie campaign at Scranton.
In the fourth, the teams traded runs to make it a 3-3 game, but in the bottom of the fifth, sophomore Maggie Donnelly (New Hyde Park, N.Y./Our Lady of Mercy Academy) roped an RBI double to score Zinn to give the Royals the lead back at 4-3. Then, in the sixth, pinch-runner freshman Erika Witt (Suffern, N.Y./Suffern) scored on a stolen base, giving the Royals a 5-3 lead entering the seventh.
The run scored by Witt proved to be a big one, as Hunter rallied in the seventh, scoring a run with two outs to make it a 5-4 game. With the bases loaded and two away, sophomore Meaghan Dowdell (Parlin, N.J./Old Bridge) was able to get out of the late jam, as she struck out the final batter of the game to clinch the win for the Royals.
Overall in game two, Donnelly was Scranton's only player to have multiple hits, finishing 2-for-2 with two runs and an RBI. Zinn had a hit and run in the game, and with the hit, she extended her current hitting streak to 20 games. In the pitching circle, Dowdell moved to 13-3 for the year after tossing a complete game, striking out five in the victory.
The University of Scranton softball team returns to action on Wednesday night, as they host Susquehanna in a Landmark Conference doubleheader at Magis Field. First pitch for game one is set for 5 p.m.
--ROYALS--
