Game 1 Box Score         Game 2 Box Score

In its final regular-season home doubleheader of the season, the Malone University softball team pocketed a sweep of visiting Urbana University on Friday as the Pioneers earned an 8-0 victory in five innings in game one and a thrilling 7-6 eight-inning win in the nightcap.

With the pair of wins, Malone improved to 10-24 overall while Urbana dropped to 18-26 on the season.

Although their regular season has concluded, the Pioneers will compete in the six-team Ohio Independent Championships tournament next week.  Malone will be among four teams in the field to compete in a pair of “play-in” games on Monday (April 30th) to determine who will join the top two seeds in the tournament's “final four” May 3-4 at the site of the top seed.  Seedings and pairings will not be announced until after Saturday's final day of regular-season play.

Game One Recap
A solid pitching effort by Pioneer starter Shelby Snyder provided the foundation for Malone's victory as she allowed just two hits in five innings of work to improve to 6-9 on the year.  Snyder had two strikeouts and a pair of walks in her shutout performance.

Malone scored a pair of runs in the second inning to take an early 2-0 lead as designated hitter Michelle Heacock earned an RBI on a ground-out to second base while centerfielder Megan Lane collected the other RBI on a sacrifice fly to center.

In the bottom of fourth, the Pioneers posted a big five-run inning to increase their lead to 7-0 as five different players earned one RBI each in the frame. In that six-hit inning, three doubles were swatted, by first baseman Stephanie Byrne, second baseman Desi Givens and third baseman Lauren Hershberger, to go along with a triple that was blasted by shortstop Kristen Atzenhoefer.

After holding the visitors scoreless again in the top of the fifth, and needing just one run in the bottom of the inning to post the 8-0 mercy-rule win, Malone secured that needed run as Heacock, who had walked and was moved around to third in the inning, scored from third on a wild pitch with two outs on the scoreboard.

Malone drilled eight hits in the contest to Urbana's two as Byrne paced the Pioneers in hits with two, in three plate appearances.  Lane led the team in RBI's with two.

For Urbana, starting pitcher Haley Kolmerten, who tossed four innings and allowed seven runs (5 earned), suffered the loss as she dropped to 9-6 on the year. 

Game Two Recap
After Urbana took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning, Malone scored a pair of runs in the bottom of the frame with one of those runs coming on an RBI single by Hershberger.

After scoreless innings in the second and third frames, Urbana exploded for five runs in the top of the fourth to take a 6-2 lead.  Malone quickly responded, though, to post two runs of its own in the bottom of the inning, one run coming on an RBI single by rightfielder Katy Carr.

Still trailing 6-4 heading into the bottom of the sixth, the Pioneers pocketed two more runs, both coming after the first two batters in the inning grounded out, to even the score at 6-6.  Those two runs were plated as Atzenhoefer swatted a two-RBI single through the right side of the infield.

With neither team scoring in the seventh inning, the contest moved into extra innings.  After Urbana failed to score in the top half of the eighth, Malone scored the game-winner on an RBI double to centerfield by Givens.  Givens' hit scored Carr, who had bunted for a single in the previous at-bat, all the way from first to secure the 7-6 victory for the Pioneers.

Urbana held a slight edge in hits in the contest by a 15-13 margin while the Pioneers had one less error, with two, than the Blue Knights' three miscues.  Carr led Malone with four hits, in five plate appearances, while Givens went three-for-five in the game.  Urbana third baseman Ashley Skinner and second baseman Brooke Schultz each went three-for-five in the contest.

Pioneer relief pitcher Nicol Chesley, who took over for starter Byrne early in the fourth inning, earned the victory to improve to 2-9 on the year.  Chesley collected all three outs in the fourth and in five total innings of work, allowed just five hits while striking out three. In addition, she shut the door on Urbana by not allowing a run in the contest. Blue Knight starting pitcher Lauren Anderson, who went the distance, was saddled with the loss and fell to 8-13 on the season.