INDIANA, Pa. – The IUP softball team put together two exciting rallies on Sunday to come away with a doubleheader sweep of Mercyhurst, defeating the Lakers 12-8 and 6-5 at Podbielski Field.
With today's victories the Crimson Hawks win the four-game series with Mercyhurst three games to one. IUP now has identical 8-4 overall and divisional records.
Standout performances
Gr.
Kaitlyn Beers: 5-8, five runs, three doubles, four RBI, three stolen bases
Fr.
Amanda Fischer: 3-5, two runs, triple, two RBI
Sr.
Renee Wall: 3-6, two runs, double, RBI
Soph.
Sara Russell: 3-run homer in game one
Game one
Mercyhurst (6-6, 6-6) was hot early, taking a 6-3 lead after three innings. That's when the Crimson Hawks exploded, posting their biggest inning of the young season in fourth.
IUP put up eight runs on six hits, while also taking advantage of a Mercyhurst error, two walks and three batters hit by pitches. Sarah Russell opened the scoring, advancing home on a throwing error by the catcher.
Hope Jones followed with an RBI single and
Kaitlyn Beers drove in one on a double to tie the game at 6-6.
Sara Hull and
Amanda Fischer had back-to-back RBI hits before Russell returned to the plate and slammed a three-run home run over the fence in left center. The big inning put IUP on top 11-6, eventually winning 12-8.
Game two
Beers drove in runs in the first and third innings to give IUP an early 2-1 lead in the nightcap. The Lakers took a lead in the middle innings, using two home runs to go up 4-2 in the fifth.
Another RBI double by Beers in the fifth made it 4-3 before Mercyhurst again went up by two with another run in the sixth.
The rally caps went on in the bottom half, with
Anna Ferrucci and Wall each hitting RBI doubles to tie the game at 5-5. Beers singled to lead off the seventh and advanced to second base on an
Ashley Renzi sac bunt. On the next batter Beers stole third and then came home when the throw went wide of the bag to give IUP another seventh inning victory.
Up next
A big battle looms next weekend as the Crimson Hawks square off against PSAC West leading Seton Hill (11-3, 8-0). The four game series starts Friday in Indiana and continues Saturday in Greensburg.
Follow
For coverage of the IUP softball program, follow the Crimson Hawks on Twitter and Instagram @IUPsoftball and online at IUPAthletics.com.
