SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. – The Slippery Rock University softball team's postseason chances remain in limbo after The Rock and California University (Pa.) split a doubleheader Sunday in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Western Division action from the SRU softball complex.
 
Sunday's game marked the end of the regular season for SRU, which celebrated its six senior players (Brooke Dawson, Allie Fischer, Paige Flore, McKenzie Garland, Lauren Hawley and Emily Nagle) following their final home games. It may have marked the end of the season in general, but the team will have to wait until Monday evening to learn its postseason fate.
 
A sweep by either team Sunday would have locked up the third and final playoff spot from the PSAC Western division, but a split means that California must play a doubleheader Monday against Edinboro to determine the final playoff seeding. The Rock concluded their regular season with a 24-19 overall record and an 11-9 mark in PSAC West games. California is currently 16-16 overall and 10-8 in league games. If the Vulcans sweep Edinboro Monday afternoon, they will earn the final playoff spot and knock SRU out. If Edinboro wins at least one game, SRU will clinch the final playoff spot and California will be eliminated.
 
Slippery Rock jumped out of the gates with a bang in the opener Sunday with a pair of home runs in the top of the first inning to take a 3-0 lead. California battled back to tie the game at 3-3, but Lauren Hawley hit her second homer of the game in the third inning and SRU never looked back on the way to a 6-3 victory.
 
The Vulcans busted game two open with six runs in the third inning on the way to a 15-0 win in five innings. Individual game recaps can be found below.

 
GAME ONE: Slippery Rock 6 – California 3
 
Lauren Hawley belted home runs in each of her first two at bats and finished the game with three RBI to lead the offense, while Brooke Dawson pitched a complete game with five strikeouts to earn the 6-3 win.
 
Dawson struck out two batters and retired the side in the top of the first inning and SRU wasted little time in getting on the board in the bottom of the inning. Emily Nagle walked to open the inning and Kailey Myers smashed a two-run homer off the scoreboard in left-center field to make it 2-0. Hawley came to the plate one batter after Myers and ripped a homer to nearly the same spot to give SRU a 3-0 lead before the first inning ended.
 
California chipped away at the lead in the second inning, plating two unearned runs on three hits and one error. The Vulcans would tie the game at 3-3 in the top of the third inning when Carlee Wickstom hit a solo home run to center field.
 
SRU responded right away in the bottom half of the inning after Nagle led off the inning with a single down the left field line and came home when Hawley hit her second homer of the game with two outs to make it 5-3 heading to the fourth.
 
Dawson shut down the Vulcans from there, allowing just three more base runners on two hits and one walk the rest of the way. The Rock added an insurance tally in the sixth inning when Caitlyn MacKelvey tagged up to score on an RBI sacrifice fly from Myers to account for the final run of the game.
 
Dawson allowed just one earned run, struck out five batters and scattered six hits over the complete game victory.
 
Nagle reached base safely four times with two hits and two walks and Hawley and Myers each finished with three RBI to account for the six runs.
 
Carly Knopka took the loss for Cal U after allowing the two-run homer from Hawley that broke open the 3-3 tie. She allowed two runs and three hits in 2.0 innings after relieving starter Emilee Downing, who allowed three runs and was pulled after the first inning. Taylor Robblee threw the final three innings, allowing four hits and one earned run.
 

GAME TWO: California 15 – Slippery Rock 0 (5 innings)

After throwing 114 pitches in the complete game victory in game one, Dawson returned to the circle to open game two for SRU. She retired the first six batters she faced in the first and second innings before California broke the gates open with six runs in the third inning on four hits, including a two-run homer from Abby Sachse.
 
The Vulcans continued to pour it on with five more runs in the fourth and four more in the fifth inning, while Slippery Rock could find no answer for pitcher Taylor Robblee, who allowed just four total hits and six base runners in the five-inning victory.
 
Nagle and MacKelvey both went 2-for-2 in the game to account for the four hits. Nagle finished the day reaching base successfully in all seven of her plate appearances with four total hits and three walks in the two games combined.
 
Dawson took the loss in game two after allowing six earned runs in 3.1 innings of work.


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