SOITHSIDE FIELD – Lauren Keys threw a one-hitter and the bats provided early support as the University of Rochester opened the Liberty League softball championships with a 9-0 victory over Skidmore College on Thursday afternoon. The win puts Rochester into the winners' bracket of the four-team event. Top-seeded Rochester will play third-seeded RPI at 10 a.m. on Friday. The Engineers advanced with a 1-0 victory over Ithaca College.
 
Three games are on tap in the double-elimination tournament for Friday. At 10 a.m. #1 Rochester plays #3 RPI. At 12:30 p.m., #2 Ithaca takes on #4 Skidmore. The loser of the Ithaca-Skidmore game will be eliminated. The winner of the Rochester-RPI game advances to Saturday's championship round at 12 p.m. The third game on Friday is an elimination game at 3 pm. It will pair the loser of the RPI-Rochester game against the winner of the Skidmore-Ithaca game.
 
The winner of that 3 p.m. game moves to Saturday's championship round. If each team has one loss after a 12 pm. game, the same two teams will play again. The winner of that second game wins the Liberty League championship and automatic bid to the NCAA Division III playoffs.
 
Rochester 9, Skidmore 0:
Keys won her seventh straight decision. She was perfect for 4.1 innings. With one down in the top of the fifth, Hannah Davis rolled the ball up towards second base and beat the throw to first for an infield single. Keys retired the last two hitters on pop ups to end the game.
 
Rochester scored in all four innings – two in the first, three in the second and third, and one in the fourth. The Yellowjackets made the best of their chances. They led, 2-0, after one and 5-0 in the second inning when they chased Davis who was the Skidmore starter.
 
Ally Kim and Hannah Kiper scored in the first – Kim on a groundout by Allison Beckwith and Keiper on a single by Hunter Gilbreath. In the second, Alexis Klee and Aly Kim were hit by pitches back to back. Bailey Nicholoff lifted a three-run home run to left for a 5-0 lead.

 
Davis moved to first base, replaced by Lindsay Raimondi. Rochester scored three unearned runs in the third, one on a passed ball, and two after a throwing error. In the fourth, Jenna Gorecki hit a pinch-hit home run to left center that completed the scoring
 
Kim and Nicholoff scored five of the Rochester runs. Kim stole two bases, boosting her season's total to 41. Nicholoff and Molly Mason each stole once.
 
Raimondi  pitched 2.2 innings of relief allowing four hits, four runs (one earned), and four walks. Davis (12-4 overall) pitched 1.1 innings (three hits, five earned runs, two walks, two HBPs).  Keys raised her record to 10-6 with the one-hitter.
 
Both Rochester and Skidmore are 24-13 heading into Friday.
 
RPI 1, Ithaca 0:
Erika Holowka threw two-hit ball for six innings and Alexis Cooke protected the lead as the Engineers booked a spot in the winners' round. RPI and Ithaca split games this season with the Bombers wining, 4-3 at home on April 24 and the Engineers taking the nitecap, 1-0.
 
This win was RPI's ninth in the last 10 games (24-15 overall). The Engineers finished third in the Liberty League standings (10-4). Ithaca is 20-16 overall and was 11-3 in the league race.
 
Holowka yielded a double to the second batter she faced – Allison Dell'Orto. She set down 15 of the next 16 hitters she faced. Kailey Collins walked with one out in the second. Holowka finshed with eight strikeouts, two base hits, and a walk allowed (Emma Kindblom dropped a one-out single to left in the sixth. It is her 11^th win of the season (11-5)
 
Cooke picked up her second save, although she worked herself into, then out of, trouble in the seventh. She walked Sela Scheinman to lead off the seventh. Cooke fanned Hudson Hassler for the first out. A wild pitch sent Scheinman to second with Collins batting. On a 3-2 pitch, Collins drove the ball to the warning track in left.  Scheinman ran to third. Cooke escaped, striking out Mulvey to end it.
 
RPI had slightly more success against Riley Piromali (7-9). She took the loss with five hits allowed, one earned run, and seven strikeouts. Anna Cornell pitched the last two innings – two hits, two strikeouts.
 
Cat Worthington, RPI's #2 hitter, doubled to left in the first. Piromali silenced the threat, strikeout out Erin Askins and retiring Gabby Comeau on a groundout. That started a run of eight straight hitters retired. Worthington started the run-producing rally in the fourth. She reached on a bunt single back to the mound and Askins did the same thing which put runners at first and second. Holowka fanned Cumeau and Liv Vizzini. Alex Ledger dropped a single into left center which scored Worthington. Another strikeout followed.
 
Anna Cornell replaced Piromali to start the sixth. With two down, Vizzini and Ledger singled. Cornell threw out pinch-hitter Caroline Peel on a comebacker. She retired Ithaca in order in the seventh – two by strikeout  - to complete the victory.