Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 Game 1 Box / Game 2 Box

TROY, N.Y. – Behind shutout pitching from juniors Jen Bach and Felicia Bua, the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) softball team defeated Hamilton College, 2-0, and, 12-0, in doubleheader action at Doris Robison Field. Additionally, head coach Erika Lewis picked up her 200th career victory in the game one victory and is now 201-104-2 in her tenure at Rensselaer.

The Engineers improved to 10-11 on the season with the victories, while the Continentals fell to 2-16 on the season.

Game one saw the Engineers strike first as freshman Caitlin McGivern (Bethlehem, PA/Notre Dame) pushed Rensselaer's first run across the plate with a triple to right center in the bottom of the third inning. Classmate Gillian McCarthy (Worthington, OH/Thomas Worthington) followed with a single to drive in McGivern and give RPI the two-run advantage.

Despite notching seven hits against Rensselaer, the Continentals were unable to solve the Engineers defense or Bach (Lansdale, PA/Gwynedd Mercy Academy), who struck out three batters and allowed just one walk to improve to 6-4 on the season. For Hamilton, freshman hurler Amy Appel (Mendham, NJ/West Morris Mendham) shouldered the loss, allowing two earned runs on five hits through 6.0 innings pitched.

Rensselaer came out swinging in the nightcap, jumping out to a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the first as McCarthy drove in a run on a single to center field and Bach blasted a two-run homerun – her team-leading fourth of the year – over the left centerfield wall.

The Engineers pushed the advantage to six (6-0) in the bottom half of the third inning as junior captain Genevieve Falco (Seaford, NY/Seaford) sent a two-out single to left. Freshman Sheena McNeil (Urbana, IL/Urbana) later singled through the right side and RPI capitalized on a bases loaded opportunity as Nicole Batan (Canton, CT/Canton) was walked to bring in the third run of the inning.

RPI exploded offensively in the fourth inning, pushing across six runs on seven hits. Bach, who had three RBI in the game, sent a sacrifice fly to center to get things going. Falco quickly followed with an RBI double to right to make it an 8-0 lead. Consecutive hits off the bats of sophomore Sara Heller (Guilderland, NY/Guilderland), McNeil and Batan helped put the game out of reach.

Bua (Gilford, NH/Gilford), who improved to 4-7 with the win, carried a no-hitter into the top of the fifth inning, but saw her perfect game fall on a single by freshman Kristin Schwam (New York, NY/Loyola School).

With two outs on the board and runners on second and third the Continentals tried to rally, but Bua got rookie Lisa Faraci (Cranbury, NJ/Peddie School) to ground out to second base and end the game. She finished with six strikeouts in 5.0 innings. In the opposing circle, Hamilton's Mandy Hyne (Bloomfield, CT/Westminster School) fell to 1-6, allowing 12 runs on 13 hits in 4.0 innings.

Rensselaer returns to the field on Wednesday against Elms College at Doris Robison Field (4pm). Hamilton hosts SUNY Cobleskill on Tuesday (3:30pm).