Slippery Rock softball extended its winning streak to three games with a sweep of East Stroudsburg Saturday afternoon.
The Rock took game one with a 2-1 victory then followed it up with a 5-1 victory in game two. The Rock improved its overall record to 11-12 and remains at 2-6 in PSAC-West play. East Stroudsburg sees its overall record drop to 9-22 overall after being swept.
Catcher Katie Saluga led Slippery Rock by going 3-for-6 on the day with one double and four RBIs. She has now reached base safely in 15 consecutive games while batting .344 in that span. Teammate Shaylee Ianno had a home run and double on the day.
In game one, Slippery Rock came from behind to earn the victory. Down 1-0 in the fifth inning, Alaynna Beers drew a walk and advanced into scoring position on a wild pitch.
Then Emily Lobdell moved the runner to third, who scored on a Katie Saluga sacrifice fly to tie the game at one. The Rock brought home the game deciding run in the 6th inning when pinch runner Lori Beth Nunemaker scored on an East Stroudsburg error.
Slippery Rock pitcher Shaylee Ianno (7-6) got the win while pitching seven innings, giving up one run on three hits with six strikeouts.
In game two, Slippery Rock’s offense exploded for all five runs in the second inning. It all started with a solo homer by Shaylee Ianno which was her second of the season. Then with the bases loaded, shortstop Kirsten Brant scored to extend the lead to 2-0.
With the bases still loaded, catcher Katie Saluga delivered the dagger with a three-run double to center field to give the Rock a 5-0 lead.
East Stroudsburg scored its only run of the game in the third inning thanks to a Slippery Rock throwing error. For the game, Slippery Rock’s Katie Saluga went 2-for-4 with three RBIs while six other players recorded a hit.
Slippery Rock pitcher Ashley Knight (3-5) got the win while pitching seven innings, giving up one run (zero earned) on five hits with eight strikeouts. Saturday’s sweep marked the first time Slippery Rock won both games of the doubleheader this season.
Head coach Becky Sciacca said that the girls played a great game and she’s proud of how they played.
“The girls played perfect softball today,” she said. “They came out strong and kept it up throughout the entire game.”
Slippery Rock’s softball team ended their four game losing streak with a split against PSAC-West division leader California University of Pennsylvania on Friday afternoon.
The Rock rebounded in game two with a 6-4 victory after getting blown out in game one, 13-1.
In game one, the Rock got demolished as they fell 13-1 in only five innings. The only offensive highlight for the Rock was a home run in the second inning by shortstop Kirsten Brant. Cal U. had the offense on display early as they took a 4-0 lead in the second inning.
The lead continued to increase as the score became 5-1 in the fourth inning before they exploded for eight runs in the fifth inning to end the game.
Slippery Rock pitcher Shaylee Ianno (6-6) took the loss while pitching four innings, giving up 11 runs on 14 hits with four strikeouts.
In game two, Slippery Rock responded by taking an early lead and never trailed the rest of the game. Slippery Rock was led on offense by designated hitter Elizibeth Gorges who went 3-for-3 at the plate with two home runs, three RBIs, and two runs scored.
Catcher Katie Saluga also had a nice game going 2-3 at the plate with one RBI with teammate Natalie Atkinson driving in two runs. Neither team could produce any offense until the fifth inning when Elizibeth Gorges connected on a solo home run to right field.
Then later in the inning Natalie Atkinson delivered a two-run single, which scored teammates Emily Lobdell and Alaynna Beers to give the Rock a 3-0 lead.
But in the fifth inning Cal U. responded with two runs to make it a one-run ballgame. Then Slippery Rock put away the game by scoring three runs in the sixth inning when Elizibeth Gorges connected on a two-run bomb and a RBI single by Katie Saluga.
Cal U. made the game interesting in the seventh inning by scoring two runs but could not make the comeback a reality.
Slippery Rock pitcher Ashley Knight (3-5) got the win while pitching seven innings, giving up four runs (two earned) on eight hits with 10 strikeouts.
Head coach Sciacca said that the team struggled with a rough day but rebounded in the second game.
“The girls started the day off rough,” she said. “They figured out how to come back from a loss and beat the No. 1 team in the conference. Everyone on the team has contributed to our wins this year. We do have a great pitching staff that keeps the games close enough for our offense to score the runs we need to win the game.”
