KISSIMMEE, FL – No. 21 University of Rochester softball got its offense going against Marian University (WI) and Kenyon College on Thursday at The Spring Games, defeating the Sabres, 10-2, in run-rule shortened six innings, and the Owls, 8-3, at the Fortune Road Complex.
 
With the two wins, #21 Rochester moves back to .500 on the year at 5-5, while Marian drops to 4-5 and Kenyon to 1-7.
 
GAME ONE: #21 Rochester 10, Marian (WI) 2 (6 inn.)
Though the Sabres would strike first against Rochester, the 'Jackets would quickly answer in the bottom of the frame.
 
Hope Matta led off the top of the first with an infield single, took second on a fielding error, third on Katelyn Matenaer's groundout to second and then scored on Emalee Depa's groundout to first, giving Marian an early 1-0 lead.
 
But Molly Broccolo got another groundout to send the Yellowjackets to the plate, and just two batters into the bottom of the first UR answered and took the lead. Following Ally Kim's leadoff double down the left-field line, Bailey Nicholoff launched a two-run blast over the left-field fence, giving Rochester a 2-1 lead.
 
And after Broccolo worked around a leadoff base runner, getting Andrea Miller to line into a double play in the top of the second, UR got right back to it at the plate, adding two more in the bottom of the second.
 
Kim again started UR's rally, this time with two outs, as the sophomore singled and quickly stole second. Nicholoff and Jenna Gorecki then drew back-to-back walks to bring up Hannah Keiper, who smacked a two-run double to left, doubling UR's tally and extending its lead to 4-1.
 
The Yellowjackets then broke out in a big way in the bottom of the third, chasing Marian starter Depa after just 2.2 innings pitched. Hunter Gilbreath led off the third with a walk and was pinch-ran for by Jensen Sminchak, who stole second. Loren Castilloux reached on a fielder's choice, and Molly Mason moved the runners over to second and third with a sacrifice bunt to bring up Allison Beckwith, who extended UR's lead to 5-1, scoring Sminchak from third with a sacrifice fly to center.
 
Rochester then loaded the bases on Kim's hit-by-pitch and Nicholoff's four-pitch walk, bringing up Gorecki who launched a three-run double to deep, left-center, scoring Castilloux, Kim and Nicholoff to give the 'Jackets an 8-1 lead.
 
Marian then made a pitching change, bringing Morgan Mack in to replace Depa, but the 'Jackets would add one more after Keiper reached on an error, scoring Gorecki to make it a 9-1 UR lead.
 
The Sabres would look to answer with a pair of singles and a passed ball to start the fourth, but Broccolo got a trio of groundouts to strand the pair, and keep Rochester up by eight.
 
Marian would push a run across in the fifth, taking advantage of a pair of UR defensive miscues to score on Matenear's sacrifice fly to center, but Broccolo got out of the inning without any more damage, and UR would then finish things off in the bottom of the sixth.
 
Keiper reached on a fielding error to start the sixth, with UR looking to walk off by run-rule fashion, up by seven. Savannah Nowak pinch-ran for Keiper and took second on Madi Turner's sacrifice bunt, before Nowak came around to score from second on Gilbreath's sacrifice fly to give UR the 10-2, run-rule victory.
 
Broccolo (4-2) earned the win, her fourth of the year, allowing two unearned runs on four hits, striking out three over 6.0 innings pitched. Depa (1-4) took the loss for Marian, allowing nine runs on six hits over 2.2 innings pitched.
 
Four 'Jackets tallied extra-base hits, led by Gorecki's 2-for-3 day with a double, walk, run scored and three RBI, while Nicholoff went 1-for-2 with a home run, two walks, three runs scored and two RBI.
 
Keiper added a double, going 1-for-4 with a double and two RBI, as UR's 2, 3 and 4 hitters combined to drive in seven.
 
GAME TWO: #21 Rochester 8, Kenyon 3
After both the 'Jackets and Owls left base runners on in the first, Maddie White and Sofia Zayas settled things down over the next three frames, combining to allow just two hits over their first four innings pitched.
 
White, making her first career start in the circle, struck out a pair, working around a one-out single in the bottom of the first, worked a 1-2-3 third and stuck out two more in the third and fourth innings.
 
Turner got the Yellowjackets going, offensively, in the top of the fifth, singling to left to start off the stanza. Nowak was inserted as a pinch runner, and after Castilloux reached on an error, putting runners at second and third with nobody out, Mason laid down a squeeze bunt, scoring Nowak to give UR a 1-0 advantage.
 
Alexis Klee then followed Mason's squeeze with a single to left, scoring Castilloux to make it a 2-0 Rochester lead.
 
The Owls would answer on Sophia Lynch's sacrifice fly in the bottom of the frame, cutting UR's lead in half, but Rochester would put up a crooked number in the top of the sixth.
 
Gorecki got the inning started with a hit-by-pitch, and Keiper followed with a walk to put two on with nobody out. A wild pitch moved the pair to second and third, and after a groundout, Turner smacked a double to left, scoring both Gorecki and Keiper to extend the lead to 4-1.
 
After Beckwith reached on an error, a batter later, Klee and Kim smacked back-to-back run-scoring doubles, knocking in three to make it a 7-1 lead. Nicholoff then drew a walk to put runners at the corners for Gorecki, who capped off the inning with an RBI single, extending Rochester's lead to 8-1.
 
And while Kenyon would get two back on Madison Buckwalter's two-run blast in the bottom of the sixth, White settled things down from there, allowing just one hit the rest of the way, striking out Jesse Leener to finish off the 8-3 victory.
 
White (1-0) earned the win, allowing three runs on five hits, striking out seven in a complete-game effort in her first career start. Zayas (1-3) took the loss, allowing eight runs on seven hits.
 
Klee and Turner led UR at the plate, each going 2-for-4 with a double, run scored and two RBI. Kim added the 'Jackets' third double of the afternoon, going 1-for-4 with a double, run scored and two RBI.
 
The Yellowjackets will wrap up their week in Florida at The Spring Games on Friday, March 10 with a pair of contests against Misericordia at 11:30 a.m., and Saint Joseph's College of Maine at 2:00 p.m. at the Fortune Road Complex – Field 4.