CLERMONT, Fla. – The Slippery Rock University softball team concluded its final day of the Spring Games with a split against the University of Bridgeport and Le Moyne College Friday in Clermont, Florida. The Rock lost an extra inning thriller against the Purple Knights in game one, 9-8, but turned around for a five inning victory over the Dolphins in game two, 10-1.
 
In the first game, Bridgeport put a seven-spot on The Rock in the bottom of the second inning, but SRU did some impressive hitting of its own and came right back with seven runs in the top of the third to tie it up.
 
Relievers Andria Copelli and Brideport's Miranda Hillman were solid in the circle keeping the game tied until the seventh. Both teams put a run on the board sending the game into extras. Unfortunately, for The Rock, the Purple Knights pushed the winning run across in the bottom of the eighth for the win.
 
Despite the loss in game one, Slippery Rock exploded for 11 hits including multi-hit games from Adeline Nicholson, Megan Brown, Aubrey Allen and Caitlyn MacKelvey. Nicholson also walloped her second home run on the year
 
Against Le Moyne, The Rock put two runs on the board in the first inning, three in the third and five in the bottom of the fourth. Leah Vith was two for three with a three-run tater and Nicholson had two RBI.
 
Chloe Sharman was credited with her first collegiate victory going all five innings and holding the Dolphins to just one run.
 
Vith kept her hit streak alive improving it to seven games. In that stretch, she is hitting .571 (12-for-21) with two home runs, a triple, three doubles and 11 RBI.
 
Over Nicholson's last seven games, she is hitting .500 (10-for-20) with two home runs, four doubles, one triple and seven RBI.
 
With the wins, SRU finished its 12 games in Florida with a 5-7 record and puts its season record to 6-11.
 
Game One: Slippery Rock 8 – Bridgeport 9 (8 innings)
Scoring got started in the bottom of the second after Kamryn Beach got on with one out. Following two wild pitches, Sam Ferreri singled her in. Hope Lincoln then singled through the left side and Cherlynn Townsend walked loading the bases. Abbigail Blanchard ripped an RBI single moving things along. After an Allison Luzzi pop up for the second out, Elyssa Marmolejo was hit by a pitch forcing in a run and Samantha Sabor cleared the bases with a double. She would later score on an RBI single from Ferreri putting the Purple Knights ahead, 7-0.
 
The Rock answered back with one of the most exciting frames of the year in the top of the third. Brown got things going with a single and Vith doubled to put two runners on. Maggie Moore then hit a sacrifice fly to score Brown and Nicholson would step up to the plate cracking a two run blast to left giving SRU three runs. After the second out, the train kept moving with three straight singles by Becca Roesch, Allen and MacKelvey. Alexa Guglielmino put the ball in play and it was booted by the shortstop allowing Allen to score. Brown would step to the plate for the second time in the inning and hit a two-run double to tie the game, 7-7.
 
All was really quiet for both sides after the third with Copelli and Hillman keeping hitters at bay until the seventh.
 
Nicholson doubled to lead off the inning and Cortney Claypoole pinch-ran for her. Kailey Myers then bunted her over to third and Roesch hit the sac fly to give The Rock the lead, 8-7.
 
In the bottom half of the inning, Copelli retired the first batter but, DiLorenzo hit a game-tying homer to center. Copelli then worked out of trouble keeping the score, 8-8.
 
With the last out of the previous inning placed at second, Hillman retired the SRU side in order in the eighth. In the bottom of the frame, Bridgeport would score the winning run on an RBI single to left, winning the game, 9-8.
 
Hillman (W, 3-0) earned the win in relief going 5.1 IP allowing one run on two hits while punching out four.
 
Camie Shumaker (L, 5-5) took the loss going 2.1 IP surrendering eight runs (seven earned) on seven hits and one walk while striking out two.
 
Game Two: Slippery Rock 10 – Le Moyne 1
In game two, SRU's bats continued rip tallying seven hits in five innings and Sharman was dealing in the circle getting her first win.
 
SRU got things rolling in bottom of the first when Nicholson drove in two runs with an RBI triple.
 
Le Moyne answered back with a run in the second, but in the bottom of the third, Slippery Rock put two runners on for the scorching hot Vith, who cranked a three-run homer to left to put The Rock up, 5-1.
 
In the fourth, SRU got a runner on and recorded back-to-back doubles from MacKelvey and Guglielmino adding two runs. Following a pitching change, SRU added three more runs to pad its lead, 10-1.
 
Sharman then retired the side in order in the top of the fifth to seal the deal.
 
Sharman (W, 1-1) nailed down her first collegiate win going 5.0 IP allowing one run on three hits and one walk while punching out five.
 
Peyton Bellrose (L, 3-3) took the loss surrendering eight runs (six earned) on seven hits and one walk while striking out three.
 
Up Next
Slippery Rock will be back in action Friday, March 22 with a doubleheader at Clarion. First pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m.

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