Flash Points:
- SFU Softball swept its doubleheader against LIU Brooklyn on Monday at the Red Flash Softball Field.
- The Red Flash won the first game, 9-1, in a mercy-rule, six-inning victory. SFU followed with a 2-1 win in the second game.
- Saint Francis improved to 29-9 overall and 4-0 in NEC play.
- Freshman Hayley Norton (Spring Grove, Pa./Spring Grove) hit two home runs to lead the SFU offense.
- Norton now has 25 home runs in her career, moving her into a tie for third all-time at SFU.
LORETTO, Pa. – Sophomore
Hayley Norton (Spring Grove, Pa./Spring Grove) hit two home runs on Monday to lead the Saint Francis Softball team to a sweep over LIU Brooklyn. The Red Flash won the first game 9-1 in a six-inning mercy-rule victory. Saint Francis followed with a 2-1 win in the second game with a late rally in the sixth inning.
Saint Francis is now 29-9 overall and 4-0 in the NEC, while LIU Brooklyn dropped to 16-24 overall and 2-4 in conference play. SFU returns to conference play on Friday with a Noon doubleheader against Robert Morris.
Saint Francis swept a doubleheader against LIU Brooklyn for the first time in program history and beat LIU twice in the season season for the first time since the 1998 NEC Tournament.
The Red Flash picked up its 29th win, already the fourth-most in a season in SFU program history. SFU needs just five wins to tie the school-record, set last season.
With her two home runs on the day, Norton now has 10 on the season and 25 for her career. She is now tied for third all-time at Saint Francis and is the sixth SFU player to reach the 25-homer mark.
The Red Flash travels to Bucknell on Tuesday for a doubleheader beginning at 3 p.m. The Bison are 21-8 overall, including 6-3 in the Patriot League.
First Game
Senior
Ethel Santai (Pine Grove, Pa./Pine Grove Area) threw her sixth complete game of the season to improve to 9-1. Santai went six innings, allowing just one run, on four hits, with a strikeout and a walk. Santai allowed just two LIU runners to get past second base and none after the third inning.
Junior Erynn Sobieski started in the circle for the Blackbirds and dropped to 9-8 this season. In five innings, Sobieski allowed eight runs, seven earned, on 12 hits and four walks. She struck out four batters. Freshman Alyssa Lanktree-Dotson replaced Sobieski after the first three batters of the sixth inning. Lanktree-Dotson recorded one out before giving up a walk-off homer.
The Red Flash offense produced nine runs on 13 hits. Sophomore
Kassidy Troxell (Navarre, Ohio/Perry) drove in three runs, on two hits, including a three-run homer. Sophomore
Hayley Norton (Spring Grove, Pa./Spring Grove) also hit a homer and finished the game with two hits and two runs. Freshman
Taylor Hoover (Phillipsburg, Ohio/Northmont) recorded three hits and drove in two runs. Freshman
Cheyenne McKee (DuBois, Pa./DuBois) also had two hits and an RBI.
LIU Brooklyn's offense was led by Gina Bond, who had an RBI double. Angie Rizzi, Schae Dickson and Kylie Mulholland each had one hit.
The Blackbirds got on the board on an RBI double to left field by Bond. The line drive allowed Angie Rizzi to score from second and give LIU a 1-0 lead.
Saint Francis took the lead in the bottom of the third. Junior
Jordan Seneca (Plum, Pa./Plum) and Norton were hit by pitches to start the inning. After a double steal moved the runners to second and third, sophomore
Sierra McKee (DuBois, Pa./DuBois) drew a walk to load the bases. Hoover then lined a shot to the right center gap to score Seneca and Norton. On the play, McKee was caught in-between third and home, but a wild throw to third base allowed McKee to cross the plate. SFU led 3-1 after three innings.
The Red Flash added two runs in the bottom of the fifth. With one out, Hoover landed a single in center. Troxell followed with a single to right. Two batters later, senior
Kindra Witthus (Hudson, Wis./Hudson) drew a walk to load the bases. C. McKee then lined a single to left, which skipped past the left fielder, allowing Hoover, Troxell and Witthus to score and extend SFU's lead to 5-1.
Saint Francis walked it off in the bottom of the sixth for a mercy-rule victory. Norton led off the inning with a bomb to right field for her ninth homer of the season. After singles by Cabell and S. McKee, two batters later, Troxell launched a ball over the wall in left to end the game.
Second Game
Senior
Ketarah DeVries (Forreston, Ill./Forreston) started in the circle in game two. DeVries threw 5.2 innings, allowing just one run on two hits, while striking out six and walking two. At one points, DeVries retired 10 consecutive batters. Santai entered the game with two outs in the sixth. She promptly got a groundout and then worked a 1-2-3 seventh, including a strikeout, to earn her 10th win of the season.
Sobieski also started the second game for LIU Brooklyn. She went the distance, pitching six innings, giving up two runs on five hits, with a strikeout and two walks.
The Red Flash had two runs on five hits in the second game. Norton led SFU with a home run and a double. Troxell added an RBI double, while Hoover and freshman
Halle Marion (Middletown, Pa./Middletown) each had a base hit.
The Blackbirds were limited to two hits, including an RBI double by Angie Vazquez and a single and a run by Rizzi.
After being held without a hit for the first five innings, the Blackbirds got on the board on an RBI double to left by Angie Vazquez. The hit scored Angie Rizzi, who had reached on a single to center for LIU's first hit of the day.
The Red Flash responded with two runs in the bottom of the sixth. Norton led off the inning by sending a 2-2 pitch over the wall in center for her second homer of the day and 10th of the season. Three batters later, Hoover lined a single to center. Troxell followed with a laser to the left field wall, allowing pinch-runner
Meg Murzello (Maple Shade, N.J./Holy Cross) to score from first and give SFU a 2-1 advantage.
