SCRANTON, Pa. – The University of Scranton softball team (24-11, 8-4 Landmark) scored 23 runs in two games and rolled to a doubleheader sweep of the Juniata Eagles (11-23, 3-9 Landmark) on Senior Day at Magis Field in Scranton on Saturday.

The Royals picked up a pair of run-rule victories on the afternoon as they took game one 11-3 in six innings and won 12-0 in five innings in the nightcap.

Scranton is locked in as the No. 3 seed in next weekend's Landmark Conference Tournament and will battle No. 2 seed Moravian on Friday afternoon at Susquehanna University with first pitch slated for 3 p.m.

Game One

The Royals broke the game open with four runs in the third and three more in the fourth en route to the 11-3 win.

Senior Jessica Indelicato (Bethlehem, Pa./Bethlehem Catholic) led off the game with a single, stole second, took third on a throwing error and scored on a sac fly from classmate Heather Alich (Bath, Pa./Northampton Area) for an early 1-0 lead. The one run lead would hold until the third inning when junior Alyssa Segnello (Flanders, N.J./Mount Olive) delivered the big blow in the four run frame with a two-run double off the centerfield wall that extended the lead to 5-0.

Juniata battled back with three runs in the top of the fourth, but the Royals immediately answered with three of their own in the home half. Junior Jenna Davida (Congers, N.Y./Clarkstown North) knocked in a run with an RBI single and Alich followed with a two-run blast to right centerfield for her first home run of the season and an 8-3 advantage.

The hosts added a run in the fifth on sophomore Jessica Stadler's (Monmouth Junction, N.J./South Brunswick) RBI single and tacked on two more runs in the sixth including RBIs from graduate student Jennifer Sweeney (Wind Gap, Pa./Dumont) and sophomore Sarah Stepnowski (Monroe Twp, N.J./Monroe), which led to the 11-3 win.

Sweeney surrendered three runs on five hits to go along with three walks and three strikeouts in six innings of work to earn the win for the Royals.

Catherine Miller was tagged with the loss for the Eagles as she allowed five runs (four earned) on six hits to go along with a walk and a strikeout over 2 2/3 IP.

Four different players tallied multi-hit games for Scranton including Alich who was 3-3 with a double, home run, three RBI and three runs scored. Stadler (2-3, RBI), Stepnowski (2-4, 2 RBI, R) and junior Lauren Cawley (Duryea, Pa./Scranton Prep) who was 2-3 with two runs scored and two stolen bases also recorded two hits apiece.

Game Two

A nine-run second inning proved to be the difference in the game as the Royals rolled to the 12-0 victory in the nightcap.

Alich came through with an RBI single and Stepnowski added an RBI double to give Scranton a 2-0 lead in the first inning and set the stage for the nine-run second. In the big second inning, the Royals sent 14 batters to the plate and seven different players drove in runs in the inning including a two-run double and an RBI single from Davida.

Davida drove in a career-high fourth run in the fourth inning as she plated freshman Hannah Keane (Randolph, N.J./Randolph) with an RBI single that extended the lead to 12-0.

The Congers, N.Y., native led six different players with multi-hit games as she was 4-4 with two doubles, four RBI and two runs scored to set new career-highs in both hits and RBI. Indelicato contributed three hits in the win, while four others added two hits apiece.

Freshman Emma Tirollo (Orange, Conn./Amity Regional) tossed a three-hit shutout and fanned four to improve to 9-4 on the year for the Royals.

Cate Baran gave up six runs on eight hits in an inning plus of work and took the loss for the Eagles.

A full preview of the Landmark Conference Tournament will be posted at athletics.scranton.edu later this week.

--ROYALS--