CLERMONT, Fla. – The Slippery Rock University softball team wrapped up its 2025 tenure at The Spring Games with an 8-5 loss to Saint Michael's College and a 5-1 defeat from Wayne State University.
 
The Rock will come back to Western Pennsylvania with a 4-12 overall record, just 1.5 games back from where they were this time last season. The Purple Knights of Saint Michael's, who play in the Northeast-10 Conference, open their season with a 1-0 record. The Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference's Wayne State Warriors improve to 9-10 overall.
 
Aubrey Mansfield led SRU by batting 3-for-5 with two RBI. Alexsa Hurd helped her pilot the crew with a 3-for-7 showing that included a home run and a double. Sarah Brown also homered for The Rock, going 1-for-3 overall.
 
Shaylyn Shall (1-for-8), Naomi Childs (1-for-2, 1 run), Emma Kennedy (1-for-3) and Madison Davis (1-for-3) all contributed a hit throughout the day.
 
Hurd (3-3) tossed another 10 strikeouts in a 6.0-inning showing in game two, finishing up her stint in Florida with an astounding 50 strikeouts in 33.2 innings. Paige Gresgott fanned four batters in the first 6.0 innings of game one, while Kayla Williams (0-2) and Alexa Uphold each recorded one strikeout in a tag-team effort for the final inning.
 
GAME ONE – Saint Michael's 8, Slippery Rock 5
Slippery Rock lost a four-run lead in the final two innings when Saint Michael's erupted for seven runs late to earn an 8-5 win over The Rock.
 
A fielder's choice put in play by Montie brought Arielle Brown home in the bottom of the first inning to grant The Rock a 1-0 lead. SRU loaded the bases and looked for more run support but had to wait for the second inning. The Purple Knights tied things up at 1-1 in the top of the second after a lead-off single.
 
Sarah Brown was the first batter up for The Rock in the home half of the second inning and launched a solo-homer to left center to put SRU back ahead, 2-1. The Rock quickly loaded the bases and saw three more runs pour in for a 5-1 lead on a powerful single that was parlayed with an error in the outfield.
 
Saint Michael's was no-hit for the next three innings but came to life in the sixth. The Purple Knights produced four hits in the final two innings, cutting SRU's lead to 5-4 after the sixth and launching ahead to an 8-5 advantage in the seventh. It was a three-up, three-down bottom of the seventh for SRU, unable to rally late.
 
Sarah Brown's home run was the second of her career, highlighting a 1-for-3 game. Hurd logged a double in a 2-for-4 game that came with one run, while Shall (1-for-4), Mansfield (1-for-2, 2 RBI) and Childs (1-for-2) each added a hit.
 
Gresgott threw four strikeouts in the opening 6.0 innings. Williams (0-2) recorded the loss after dealing one K while one out got on the board. Uphold finished the game's final 0.2 innings with an additional strikeout.
 
CJ Davidson opened the game for the Purple Knights in the circle with no strikeouts in 2.0 innings. Freshman Kate Parker (1-0) lobbied five strikeouts in the final 5.0 columns while giving up just one hit, no walks and no runs to earn the win.
 
The Rock outhit Saint Michael's 6-5. SRU committed no errors and left five runners on base, while the Purple Knights finished their season opener with one error and six left on.
 
GAME TWO – Wayne State 5, Slippery Rock 1
The Rock held a one-run lead for the first 3.5 innings of game two but succumbed to a 5-1 loss at the hands of Wayne State.
 
Hurd got The Rock going with their 1-0 lead with a solo-home run into centerfield in the second overall at-bat of the game. In the circle, she allowed just one hit through the first three innings to keep the Warriors off the board.
 
Four hits and an error in the bottom of the fourth gave way to four Wayne State runs. The Warriors added an insurance run for a 5-1 advantage in the bottom of the sixth, a period that featured two hits and two additional SRU errors. The Rock left one runner stranded with no runs to show for in the seventh inning.
 
Hurd's home run highlighted her 1-for-3 game, while Mansfield went 2-for-3 at the plate. Kennedy and Davis both batted 1-for-3, as The Rock were outhit 7-5. Jessica Goldhardt stole one base. Hurd fell to 3-3 in the circle despite the 10-strikeout effort that saw no walks and just three earned runs through 6.0 innings.
 
Katelyn DeWitt led the Warriors offensively by batting 2-for-3 with two doubles and an RBI. Elly Koopman (3-0) helped Wayne State out on both sides, throwing four strikeouts through the 7.0-inning win and batting 2-for-3 with a double.
 
SRU committed three errors in total and left six runners on base, while Wayne State kept it clean with no errors and just three left on.
 
UP NEXT
Slippery Rock is next scheduled to host Wheeling University in a non-conference doubleheader slated for 3 p.m. March 19 at Kasnevich Field.





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