Rochester missed a chance to clinch the regular season softball title in the Liberty League when the Yellowjackets split a doubleheader with RIT on Saturday afternoon. Rochester won the opener, 9-1, in five innings and RIT won game two, 2-0, in a terrific pitching duel.
 
The split gives Rochester an 8-2 mark in Liberty League play. The Yellowjackets are 22-10 overall. RPI and Union split a doubleheader in Schenectady with Union wining game one, 4-3, and RPI taking the nitecap, 6-1.
 
That puts RPI at 6-4 with a DH left against Clarkson on Sunday. Rochester plays at St. Lawrence, and Union visits Skidmore. St. Lawrence, Union, and Skidmore are all 5-5.  The top four finishers advance to the Liberty League championship tournament later this week at the number one seed.
 
In game one, Rochester scored in each of the first three innings – four in the first, two in the second, three in the third – to take a 9-0 lead. Kayla Kibling was 3-4 with two runs scored. Brittany Grage had a two-run triple in the second inning. Julia Liberto was 2-2 with two RBIs.
 
On the mound, Grage picked up her ninth win of the season. She scattered six hits, allowed one earned run, walked one, and struck out nine. She set down nine of the first 10 hitters she faced. Sarah Wolcott doubled leading off the second, but Grage struck out two and got a comebacker to end the ining. In the fourth, Emily Shoemaker singled and Wolcott worked a one-out walk. Grage got a strikeout and groundout.
 
The Tigers (9-21, 4-8 Liberty League) put together four singles in the fifth to break onto the scoreboard. With one down, they linked three straight hits together loading the bases. Grage struck out pinch-hitter Brooke Kaminski before Amanda Cook singled through the left side. Grage fanned Wolcott to end the game.
 
Rochester scored four in the first. Kibling singled. Shelby Corning singled to center with Kibling racing to third. When the ball was misplayed, Kibling scored and Corning advanced to second.  Grage walked. After a flyout, Sarah Wayson singled in Corning. Liberto doubled in two more. Grage tripled in two in the second and Rochester scored three in the third, two of those unearned.
 
In game two, RIT's Sierra Valentine allowed two hits, walked three, and struck out one to get her second win of the season. Eleni Wechsler allowed three hits, two unearned runs, walked two, and struck out 10.
 
Both RIT runs came with errors in the mix. Wolcott walked, leading off the second. With one down, Sam Killian singled to right and Wolcott advanced to third. Destiny Pacheco ran for Killian. Pacheco took off for second. Rochester cut off the throw and Laurelle Byrne-Cody threw home with Wolcott halfway down the line. As she retreated towards third, the throw squirted away. She reversed field and managed to score.
 
In the seventh, Killian reached on a one-out fielding error. Alexandria Lunderman waked. Amber Libby doubled to left center – the only hard-hit ball by either team in the game. Killian scored. Lunderman was thrown out at the plate, Corning to Byrne-Cody, to Rachel Roddenbery.
 
Rochester stranded five in the first three innings, only two in scoring position. The Yellowjackets never got a runner as far as third base. They had a small uprising in the third. Kibling walked and was bunted to second. Grage reached on a fielding error. Wechsler bounced to third where Mackenzie Martin stepped on the bag to retire Kibling for the second out. Wayson flied out.