First Game
 
GREENVILLE, N.C. – The Saint Francis softball team earned an 8-0 win in six innings over UMass to start the final day of the East Carolina Pirate Clash.  The Red Flash had eight hits, while junior Ketarah DeVries (Forreston, Ill./Forreston) allowed only two hits to the Minutemen.  SFU is now 6-4 on the season.
 
DeVries pitched all six innings, including a No-Hitter through 4.1 innings.  She finished with five strikeouts and four walks, allowing only seven UMass batters to reach base.  DeVries is now 1-1 on the season.
 
Sophomore Madison Cabell (Ivor, Va./Southampton) hit her first home run of the year, while sophomore Jordan Seneca (Plum, Pa./Plum) went 3-for-3 with two RBI and a run scored.  Freshman Sierra McKee (DuBois, Pa./DuBois) added two hits, while driving in a run and scoring a run.
 
The Red Flash scored the first run of the game on a single by Seneca in the bottom of the first.  McKee singled up the middle to leadoff the inning.  Freshman Hayley Norton (Spring Grove, Pa./Spring Grove) drew a walk to move McKee to second.  Seneca followed with her own single up the middle to score McKee. 
 
Saint Francis added a run in the bottom of the second.  With two outs and the bases loaded, McKee drew a walk to plate Troxell and give SFU a 2-0 lead.
 
The Red Flash put up three more runs in the bottom of the third.  Seneca and junior Alexis Bower (Cogan Station, Pa./Williamsport Area) started the inning with consecutive singles.  Three batters later, Cabell launched a shot over the left field wall for a three-run homer to extend the SFU lead to 5-0.
 
SFU plated two runs in the bottom of the fourth.  Junior Kindra Witthus (Hudson, Wis./Hudson) was hit by a pitch to start the inning.  McKee followed by drawing a walk.  After Norton grounded out to move the runners to second and third, Seneca again singled up the middle, scoring Witthus.  Though McKee was thrown out trying to score, the throw allowed Seneca to move up to second.  After back-to-back wild pitches, Seneca scored for the seventh Red Flash run.
 
Saint Francis clinched a mercy-rule win with another run in the bottom of the sixth on a single to right by Norton, which scored pinch-runner Kelsie Marconi (Lowber, Pa./Yough).  With one out, Witthus was hit by a pitch.  Marconi came in to run for Witthus and moved up to second on a wild pitch.  A single to left by McKee put runners on the corners.  Norton then singled to drive in Marconi and end the game.
 
The Minutemen only had two innings, the first and fifth, in which they had more than one batter reach base.
 
Second Game
 
GREENVILLE, N.C. – The Saint Francis softball team dropped an 8-5 decision to East Carolina in the final game of the ECU Pirate Clash on Sunday.  The teams were tied at 5 going into the top sixth, but the Pirates scored three runs to take the lead.  The Red Flash finished the weekend going 3-3 to hold a 6-5 record on the season.
 
Junior Blaire Lauthers (Doylesburg, Pa./Fannett-Metal) took the loss in relief action.  She is now 2-1 this year.  Lauthers entered in the fourth inning to replace the starter, Bower.  In two innings of work, Lauthers allowed three runs on four hits, while walking three. 
 
Bower pitched the first 3.2 innings, allowing five runs on five hits, while striking out one and walking four.  Junior Ethel Santai (Pine Grove, Pa./Pine Grove Area) pitched the final 1.1 innings, not allowing a hit, with a strikeout and a walk.
 
Lydia Ritchie got the win in relief for the Pirates, throwing the final 2.2 innings, giving up one hit, while striking out three and walking two.
 
Driving in all five SFU runs was Norton, who had a triple and a homer.  Witthus added two hits and scored a run.
 
East Carolina got on the board first on a two-run homer in the opening inning by Casey Alcorn.  On the homer, Meredith Mitchell also scored.
 
However, the Red Flash responded with a two-run shot of their own by Norton.  After McKee led off the inning with a walk, Norton crushed a ball to left-center to tie the game at two.
 
Norton helped Saint Francis add three more runs in the bottom of the second.  With two outs and the bases loaded, Norton tripled to center to clear the bases, scoring Witthus, senior Kate Blattenberger (Martinsburg, Pa./Central) and Cabell to take a 5-2 lead.
 
Three doubles in the top of the fourth drove in three runs as the Pirates tied the game again, 5-5.  Kacie Oshiro's double to right-center scored Megan Quick and Ali Ramirez.  The next batter, Alcorn, doubled down the left field line to score Oshiro.
 
East Carolina took the lead with three runs in the top of the sixth.  Kerry Butler singled to score Karlie Smith.  The next batter, Kelsi Briggs, doubled to drive in Butler and Sloan Bradford.
 
The Red Flash travels next weekend to Tempe, Ariz. for the Diamond Devil Invitational, hosted by Arizona State.  That begins a stretch of 10 games in eight days in the state of Arizona.