SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Saint Francis University softball earns two victories 16-2 over Rhode Island in five innings and 5-1 over Wofford to open its weekend at the Wofford Invitational.
 
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
» Rachel Marsden (3-1) went 6.2 innings and allowed one unearned run on one hit with no walks and seven strikeouts. She went 3-for-8 with four runs scored, two triples and four RBIs at the plate.
» Ashley Wruble went 3-for-6 with four runs scored, one double, two RBIs and carried a .625 on-base percentage.
» Olivia Ulam went 3-for-6 with three runs scored, one double and three RBIs.
» Kaylie Walters scored four runs, drew four walks with no strikeouts and went 3-for-4 on stolen base attempts.
» Grace Vesco (3-0) went 4.0 innings and allowed one run on two hits with two walks and two strikeouts to earn the victory over Rhode Island.  
» Six players that started both games recorded three hits in the two games combined.
 
TURNING POINTS OF GAME ONE
» Saint Francis started the scoring with 12 consecutive runs in the first three innings. Walters began the scoring on an error, followed by two RBI doubles by Ulam and Nash that opened a 3-0 lead in the first inning.
» The Red Flash followed with a five-run second inning behind a Ulam RBI single, Marsden two-run triple, Sydney Baker RBI single and Baker scoring on an error that led to an 8-0 advantage.
» In the third, Ulam recorded another RBI single, followed by Marsden's second two-run triple of the game. Lexi Hernandez drove in Marsden with a single to open the 12-0 lead.
» Rhode Island got one run back in the bottom of the third behind an RBI single. Saint Francis responded with a four-run fifth inning behind a Hannah Bendle two-run single, Ashley Orischak RBI groundout and Bendle scoring while Walters was caught in a rundown.
» The Rams recorded one more run in the fifth on a Red Flash error before Saint Francis clinched its run-rule 16-2 victory.
 
TURNING POINTS OF GAME TWO
» The Red Flash started with a three-run first inning that started with a double steal to score Wruble. Nash followed with an RBI single and Annabelle Farmer capped off the inning with an RBI double.
» Saint Francis added to its lead with a Wruble two-run double that drove home Orischak and Walters and opened a 5-0 lead in the second inning.
» Wofford recorded its only hit of the game in the fourth inning and cut the deficit to 5-1 on an RBI groundout.
» After Saint Francis recorded the only two hits in the final three innings, the Red Flash clinched their four-run victory and sweep of the first day at the Wofford Invitational.
 
FLASH NUGGETS
» The 16 runs scored against Rhode Island are tied for the most by Saint Francis since a 21-run output on April 3, 2021 at Merrimack.
» Marsden threw the fifth one-hitter of her career and she recorded the 450th strikeout of her career during the first inning against Wofford.
» Both Marsden and Ulam recorded the fifth three-hit game of their respective careers in the victory over Rhode Island.
» Walters' eight stolen bases through seven games is already over halfway to the 2023 stolen base leader Jordan Pietrzykoski's mark of 14.
» Aliya Garroway recorded the first hit of her collegiate career against Wofford, while Madelynn Kessler made her collegiate debut against Rhode Island.

UP NEXT
Saint Francis continues the Wofford Tournament on Saturday, Feb. 17 against Northern Kentucky at 10 a.m. The Red Flash will have a second opponent and time that is to be determined based on results.