Hampton, Va. – The Youngstown State softball team split a doubleheader this afternoon against Hampton winning 11-0 before falling 6-5 at the Pirate Softball Stadium.
The Penguins improve to 7-9 on the season while the Pirate move to 5-10 on the year.
Sophomore pitcher Isabella O'Brien fired a one-hit, complete-game shutout with six strikeouts to pace the Penguins. O'Brien faced just 16 batters, one above the minimum and posted her first shutout as a Penguin.
Sophomore Bella Meyer went 3-for-3 with three runs scored, a home run and two runs batted in to lead the Penguins offense.
Tai Turner went 2-for-3 with a home run and three runs batted while Selah Moyer belted a solo home run.
The Penguins scored once in the top of the first on an infield single by Wilkerson and another in the top of the second on Meyer's two-out solo home run.
Youngstown State exploded for six runs in the top of the third inning keyed by Turner's two-run blast to left-center field and Meyer's run-scoring single down the right-field line.
Moyer started the Penguins' three-run fifth with a home run to left-center followed by a bases-loaded walk to Turner, and the Penguins added an unearned run to close out the scoring.
In the nightcap, Hampton scored two runs in the bottom of the sixth and four more in the bottom of the seventh to escape with a 6-5 victory.
The Penguins plated runs in the top of the fourth and fifth innings to take a 2-0 advantage. Emma Gilkerson led off the fourth with a double and Tatum Werley scored on Ayla Ray's fielder's choice for the first run of the game. Bree Kohler singled and eventually scored on a wild pitch for the 2-0 lead.
The Pirates knotted the game at 2-2 with a pair of runs in the bottom of the sixth, but the Penguins answered with three runs in the top half of the seventh to regain a 5-2 lead. Ray doubled to lead off the inning and scored on Moyer's single up the middle. Kohler walked and Meyer reached on a fielder's choice, and both came around to score on Wilkerson's two run double to right-center field.
The Penguins take on Longwood in a single game, Thursday, March 5, at 5 p.m.
