ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – The Eckerd softball team swept Florida Southern in a Saturday afternoon doubleheader at the Turley Athletic Complex to take the series.
Brooklyn Cardona played hero in the first game with a walk-off RBI single in extra innings to give the Tritons the win, 3-2 (8 Inn.). The Tritons then blanked the Moccasins in the finale with a 9-0 (5 Inn.) victory behind a 3-for-3, six RBI game at the plate for
Kayla Hurley.
The first game began with a classic pitcher's duel for the first three innings, as both offenses struggled to get going. In the fourth inning, Florida Southern broke the stalemate with a solo homerun. Eckerd immediately answered, plating two runs in the bottom of the frame to take the lead, 2-1, from a two-run homerun by
Skylar Redish. FSC tied the game in the sixth inning with an RBI double, and neither team could plate the winning run in the seventh.
In the eighth inning,
Lauren Margolis gave EC momentum with a two-out double down the left field line. Redish was intentionally walked in the following at-bat before a wild pitch advanced Margolis and Redish to third and second, respectively. Cardona's walk-off RBI single to right-center field secured the victory for the Tritons in the opener, 3-2.
The Tritons were dominant in the second showing on all fronts, scoring nine runs on 10 hits, with
Hannah Perkins tossing five scoreless innings. Hurley opened the scoring in the finale with a two-run homer to left field for an early 2-0 advantage in the second inning.
Eckerd's offensive outburst in the third inning saw EC plate six runs behind an RBI single from
Megan Diaz, a three-run double by Hurley, an RBI single by
Brenna Lokeinsky, and an RBI single by Margolis. Hurley added her sixth RBI of the game in the fourth with a single to extend EC's lead, 9-0, that it held into the fifth to run-rule the Moccasins.
HOW IT ENDED
Game 1
Final: Eckerd 3, Florida Southern 2 (8 Inn.)
WP: Durrance (5-3)
LP: Hickey (2-3)
HR: Redish (5)
Game 2
Final: Eckerd 9, Florida Southern 0 (5 Inn.)
WP: Perkins (8-5)
LP: Rogers (1-3)
HR: Hurley (2)
Records: Eckerd 13-9 (5-7 SSC); Florida Southern 10-14 (1-8 SSC)
NOTES AND NUMBERS
- Hurley was dominant in the finale, hitting 3-for-3 at the dish with six RBIs and three extra-base hits.
- Diaz went 3-for-6 on the day with an RBI.
- Lokeinsky turned in a multi-hit performance in the second game, going 2-for-2 with an RBI and a walk.
- Redish led EC at the dish in the first game, going 2-for-3 with two RBIs and a walk.
- Cardona had three hits on the day with one RBI, including a walk-off RBI single in the first game.
- Kensley Durrance earned her fifth win of the season in the opener, pitching all eight innings while allowing two earned runs and two strikeouts.
- Perkins improves to 8-5 on the season with her win in the finale. She tossed five scoreless innings, scattering four hits with four strikeouts.
QUOTABLE
"I am proud of our fight today after having a rough game last night," said head coach
Katie Profitt. "The team's ability to bounce back is tremendous."
UP NEXT
The Tritons welcome Mercy College (NY) to the Turley Athletic Complex for an out-of-conference doubleheader on Monday at 1:00 PM.
