TROY, N.Y. – After taking the first game of the day 3-0, freshman Evan McDowell sent the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) softball team home with another weekend sweep. She capped the afternoon with a walk-off grand slam in extra innings to give the Engineers a 7-3 victory in game two over the Clarkson University Golden Knights. With the win, RPI improves to 19-5 overall and 4-0 in Liberty League play, while Clarkson falls to 12-10 and 2-2 in league action.
RPI has now won 18 of their last 19 games this season, racking up a current eight-game winning streak.
Game 1
For the second straight day,
Alexis Cooke and
Brooke Sroczinski combined for seven shutout innings, putting their mark to 14 innings without giving up a run.
Both sides threatened in the first inning, with Cooke collecting back-to-back strikeouts with a runner on third to end the top of the inning. The Engineers also put a runner in scoring position, but could not cross the plate.
RPI broke through on the scoreboard in the bottom of the second inning, as freshman
Maddy Brooks dropped a ball down the right field line, scoring
Alex Ledger and McDowell to give the Engineers a 2-0 lead.
The score remained until the bottom of the fifth inning, as a groundout by
Callista Adorno to first base brought home
Catherine Worthington from third base to extend the RPI lead to 3-0.
Sroczinski came in for relief in the top of the sixth inning for the Engineers, shutting the door on the Golden Knights push for the win.
Game 2
RPI opened the scoring in the bottom of the second inning, as
Liv Vizzini and
Sydney Speanburg both collected doubles, with Speanburg knocking in Vizzini to give the Engineers a 1-0 lead.
Clarkson evened the score in the top of the third inning, as Elissa Uveino led off the inning with an inside the park home run. A diving attempt in right field was missed by RPI, allowing the ball to get to the wall and Uveino run around to even the score.
Things stayed even at 1-1 until the top of the fifth inning. With two runners on, Zoey Kovach knocked a double over the left fielder's head, scoring both runs and pushing the Golden Knights ahead 3-1.
The Engineers responded with a run in the bottom of the fifth, as
Erin Askins crushed a ball to the right center field gap. As she made her way into third with a triple, the throw from second base went wide of the bag, allowing Askins to run home and cut the lead to 3-2.
In the bottom of the seventh and two out, Askins delivered down to her last strike sending another tripled to the right center field gap, scoring Brooks to even the score at 3-3.
Erika Holowka – who pitched all eight innings for the Engineers scattering seven hits and striking out six - held down the Golden Knights in the top of the eighth, giving way to the RPI offense. Three straight singles from
Gabby Comeau, Adorno, and Ledger loaded the bases with nobody out. After a short flyout to left, McDowell stepped to the plate with one out.
Deep into the count after connecting on a sharp line drive down the third base line, McDowell put one in play that was good for a sacrifice fly but kept on going over the left field fence for the game-winning knock.
The Engineers return to action on Wednesday, April 19 at 3:30 p.m. when they travel to take on Hamilton College on the road in non-conference action.
