Youngstown, Ohio — Youngstown State's softball team scored eight runs in the fourth inning in both games of a doubleheader sweep of St. Bonaventure on Wednesday at the Covelli Sports Complex. The Penguins won the opener 8-0 in five innings, and they scored the final 10 runs in a 13-5, five-inning victory in game two.
Kennedy Dean posted three RBIs in the opener and two more in the nightcap, bringing her career total at Youngstown State to 104. YSU had eight runs on seven hits in game one, and it exploded for 17 hits over its 12 outs at the plate in game two. Bella Meyer and Bree Kohler both had three hits in the second contest.
Youngstown State improved to 22-14 with the doubleheader sweep, and it won in five innings for the fourth time in the last five contests. The Bonnies are now 5-33.
Game One Recap
All eight runs in game one of the doubleheader on YSU's campus were scored by the home team in the bottom of the fourth inning.
The Bonnies and Penguins each left a runner on in the first and second innings, and the sides were retired in order in the third. Dean threw out Sydney DeGram trying to steal third with one out in the top of the fourth, and Youngstown State posted eight runs on six hits, two errors and a walk in the bottom of the inning.
Emma Gilkerson started the inning with an infield single, and Tai Turner walked on four pitches to put two runners on for Dean. YSU's senior catcher ripped the first pitch of her at bat over the centerfield fence for the game's first runs, putting the Penguins up 3-0.
Selah Moyer doubled, and Kohler tripled later in the inning to make it 4-0 and chase St. Bonaventure starter Mackenzie Frani. Leila Staszak greeted reliever Kendall Stull with an RBI single that plated Kohler, and Meyer's double put two runners on. Back-to-back errors allowed Staszak and Meyer to score, and Macy Littler scored the eighth run on the inning on a sacrifice fly by pinch-hitter Gabbie Evans.
Kennedy Kimball went the distance in the circle for the Penguins, holding the Bonnies to one hit and one walk while striking out two over five innings. The freshman right-hander improved to 8-5 this season with the victory. Frani was charged with five runs on five hits for St. Bonaventure, and the three runs against Stull were unearned.
Game Two Recap
After being held to one hit in the opener, three of the first four Bonnies to step to the plate had hits in game two as the visitors took a 2-0 lead. Colsten Beers doubled, and St. Bonaventure had two runners in scoring position after Abigail Ahern singled and raced to second on a throwing error. Beers scored on an infield groundout for SBU's first run of the doubleheader, and Lauren Dundon's one-out, RBI single brought in Ahern to make it 2-0.
The Penguins took the lead in the bottom of the second with three runs after the first two batters of the inning were retired. Moyer and Kohler started the rally with back-to-back singles, and Naomi Bottomlee followed with an RBI single to plate Moyer. Bottomlee went to second on the throw, and that allowed her to score with Kohler on Meyer's two-run single that put the Penguins up 3-2.
The Bonnies answered in the next half inning as Dundon's two-run double put them up 4-3, and she scored on an RBI single by Nolah Moyer.
YSU tied the game in the bottom of the third as Turner tripled and scored on an error, and Kohler hit an infield single with the bases loaded.
St. Bonaventure left the bases loaded in the top of the fourth, and Youngstown State sent 13 batters to the plate while scoring eight runs in the bottom of the inning. Turner hit the go-ahead single with nobody out to plate Lydia Wilkderson, and Selah Moyer, Meyer and Gilkerson each recorded two RBIs in the inning.
Isabella O'Brien blanked the Bonnies over two innings of relief to earn her fifth victory of the season. She allowed one hit and walked two batters while recording three strikeouts. Stull was charged with seven runs on 10 hits over three innings for St. Bonaventure.
Youngstown State has a bye weekend coming up, and it will play a home-and-home doubleheader with Mercyhurst next week. The two games in Youngstown will be on Tuesday starting at 3 p.m., and the doubleheader in Erie, Pa., the following day will also start at 3 p.m. YSU's Horizon League schedule will continue against Green Bay on April 17.
