EDINBORO, Pa. – The Slippery Rock University softball team went 1-for-2 in holding off Edinboro rallies when it split with the Fighting Scots via a 12-9 win and a 9-7 loss Saturday on the road.
 
With Saturday's doubleheader having virtually no impact on Slippery Rock's postseason situation, The Rock wrapped up the regular season at 25-25 overall and 18-13 within the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Western Division. The Fighting Scots ended their 2024 campaign at 15-29 in total and 12-20 in conference play.
 
The split ensures Slippery Rock's first back-to-back seasons of breaking .500 or greater in conference play since 1988-89.
 
Slippery Rock also tallied three home runs on the day thanks to Alexsa Hurd, Julia Montie and Sarah Brown. With Brown's first career home run, the second of the day for The Rock, Slippery Rock surpassed 46 homers this year which broke the program's single-season record.
 
While neither of them added to the home run total, Julia Nutter (3-for-5) and Aubrey Mansfield (3-for-6) led Slippery Rock offensively by combining for three RBI. Montie had the third three-hit day for The Rock, combining for a 3-for-9 effort with a team-best three RBI.
 
Hurd joined Samantha Susany in putting together 2-for-7 performances at the plate with each driving two runs in. Arielle Brown (1-for-9), Sarah Brown (1-for-3), Mackenzie Freeman (1-for-7), Emma Kennedy (1-for-3) and Jeanna Sukey (1-for-2) all added a hit through the afternoon. Madison Davis and Grace Smith both carried a run across the plate for The Rock as well.
 
Kelsi Anderson (10-10) earned the game one win after dealing eight strikeouts in the opening 5.0 innings pitched before Paige Gresgott wrapped up the game. Gresgott (0-1) spent time in the circle in both games, tallying five strikeouts in 2.2 innings pitched. Mackenzie Borkovich (5-3) fanned a pair of batters in 4.0 innings while Alexa Uphold (0-1) also logged a K in 1.1 innings.
 
GAME ONE – Slippery Rock 12, Edinboro 9
Slippery Rock posted a 12-9 game one win against the Fighting Scots despite a scary sixth inning that featured six Edinboro runs.
 
An RBI single by Nutter put Slippery Rock on top with a 1-0 lead in the second inning before Edinboro pulled ahead, 2-1. Montie homered in the top of the third to bag a pair of runs to pull back ahead before Edinboro again played spoiler with a tying run at 3-3 in the bottom of the third inning.
 
A fielding error that scored both Nutter and Sukey followed up by an RBI single by Mansfield in the fourth launched SRU out to a 6-3 lead in the fourth. The Rock added two runs in the fifth from an error and a Sukey sac-fly as well as four runs in the sixth with a trio of hits including Sarah Brown's first career home run.
 
A seemingly comfortable 12-3 lead vanished rapidly in the bottom of the sixth when the Fighting Scots piled six runs onto the board to keep the game alive and cut Slippery Rock's advantage to 12-9. The Rock left bases loaded in the seventh but held Edinboro to just one hit in its half of the final frame to survive with a three-run win.
 
Montie led The Rock with a 3-for-5 showing at the plate with three RBI while Hurd (1-for-3) and Sukey (1-for-2) both doubled. Sarah Brown also went 1-for-3 with her home run.
 
Mansfield and Nutter both contributed a two-hit effort going 2-for-3 with an RBI, while Susany put together a 1-for-4 game. Davis, Olivia Logan and Paige Parker all made cameos as well.
 
Anderson fanned eight of the 25 batters faced in the opening 5.0 innings before Gresgott wrapped up the game with four strikeouts in 2.0 innings. Macy Sral (5-12) was the first of three Edinboro pitchers to step into the circle. The Fighting Scots wound up with a 12-11 advantage in hits but committed six errors opposed to SRU's one.
 
GAME TWO – Edinboro 9, Slippery Rock 7
A phenomenal first inning could not carry Slippery Rock all the way through seven innings as The Rock fell to Edinboro in game two, 9-7.
 
Slippery Rock batted around and springboarded off to a 6-0 lead in the first inning, an output that began with a two-run homer from Hurd. Edinboro answered in the bottom half of the first with a solo homer to cut the lead to 6-1.
 
The Fighting Scots chipped away with RBI hits in the second and fourth innings to bring the lead down to 6-4 before tying things up in the fifth inning, 6-6.
 
An infield RBI single from Susany in the top of the sixth put The Rock back on top with a 7-6 edge before the Fighting Scots went ahead for the final time in the bottom half of the column with a brace of RBI doubles to give Edinboro the 9-7 win.
 
The Rock were outhit 13-7 through the contest with offense coming from Arielle Brown (1-for-4), Freeman (1-for-4), Hurd (1-for-4), Kennedy (1-for-3), Mansfield (1-for-3), Nutter (1-for-2) and Susany (1-for-3).
 
Uphold suffered the loss in her second appearance for SRU in the circle, pitching 1.1 innings with one strikeout. Her stint was preceded by Borkovich, who logged two Ks in the first 4.0 innings before Gresgott closed out the final 0.2 innings with one strikeout. Lexi Frisina (1-2) earned the dub for the Fighting Scots after serving as Edinboro's wing for the final 6.2 innings with four strikeouts.
 
LOOKING AHEAD
Slippery Rock will play in the first round of the PSAC Tournament May 1 in Quakertown, Pennsylvania. Should The Rock retain the fourth seed in the PSAC West, they will face the fifth seed in the PSAC East on day one of the double-elimination playoff.





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