University of Rochester softball won its seventh and eighth-straight contests, taking two from the SUNY Cortland Red Dragons on Sunday afternoon at Southside Field. First-year Molly Broccolo pitched a one-hit, complete-game shutout as UR took game one, 2-0 before the 'Jackets scratched out six runs on 11 hits in the 6-3, game-two victory.
 
With the two wins, Rochester moves to 11-5 on the year, while the Red Dragons fall to 8-4.
 
GAME ONE: Rochester 2, SUNY Cortland 0
Though the Red Dragons picked up a pair of early base runners in the top of the first, as Elaina Ornstein reached on an error and McKenna Barry drew a one-out walk, Broccolo got Brooke Scheibe to ground into a 4-6-3 double play to end the threat, and send UR to the plate.
 
The Yellowjackets then took advantage of a pair of Cortland defensive miscues to take a 1-0 lead. Ally Kim led off for Rochester, reached on a fielding error and then stole second, giving UR a runner in scoring position. And though Karlee Weeden struck out the next two batters, Jenna Gorecki reached on another Red Dragon error, bringing Kim around to score to give Rochester the lead.
 
In the circle, Broccolo settled down after allowing a pair of base runners in the top of the first and worked a 1-2-3 second, third and fourth before the 'Jackets again got on the scoreboard.
 
Madi Turner led off the bottom of the fourth with a double and was pinch-ran for by Jensen Sminchak. Savannah Nowak then put runners on second and third, legging out an infield single. And while the Red Dragon threw Sminchak out at the plate, turning two on Hunter Gilbreath's pop-out, Lauren Keys pinch hit for Molly Mason and roped the first pitch into left center, scoring Nowak to make it a 2-0 lead.
 
That would be all the run support Broccolo needed, as the first-year continued to make quick work of the Red Dragons, setting Cortland down in order in the fifth and working around the Red Dragons' lone base hit, a leadoff single in the top of the sixth before finishing off a 1-2-3 top of the seventh to secure the 2-0 victory.
 
Broccolo (7-2) earned the win for UR, pitching a complete-game, one-hit shutout. The first-year allowed just one hit, walked one and struck out three over 7.0 innings pitched.
 
For the Red Dragons, Weeden (2-2) took the loss, allowing two runs, one earned, on five hits, striking out five over 6.0 innings pitched.
 
Kim and Nowak scored UR's two runs, while Keys picked up the lone RBI. Nicholoff and Turner each tallied extra-base hits, while Kim and Nowak also added a stolen base apiece.
 
GAME TWO: Rochester 6, SUNY Cortland 3
The Red Dragons struck first against Keys and the Yellowjackets, with back-to-back one-out hits by Gina Meyers and Barry pushing an early run across for SUNY Cortland.
 
But Keys worked out an early jam, stranding a pair in the top of the first, and Rochester quickly leveled the score in the bottom of the frame.
 
Kim drew a leadoff walk and stole second, coming around to score on Gorecki's RBI single to left to even the score at one-all.
 
Keys would settle down, working a 1-2-3 top of the second, but the Red Dragons would retake the lead in the top of the third.
 
Ornstein led off with an infield single and stole second and then third on Barry's walk before Scheibe's sacrifice fly made it a 2-1 Cortland lead.
 
Once again though, Rochester came right back to level the score at 2-2 in the bottom of the frame. Kim dropped in a leadoff double, and once again followed up a hit with a stolen base, putting the game-tying run 90 feet from home. Up next, Bailey Nicholoff brought Kim home with a sacrifice fly to center, leveling the score at two-all.
 
And after Maddie White,  who relieved Keys to start the fourth, worked around a pair of two-out, Red Dragon singles in the top of the frame, UR took the lead in the bottom of the inning.
 
Turner drew a hit-by-pitch to lead off the inning and was pinch-ran for by Sminchak. Sminack then took second on Nowak's sacrifice bunt, stole third and came around to score on a wild pitch to make it 3-2 in favor of the Yellowjackets.
 
White then set Cortland down in order in the top of the fifth, and Rochester put up three more in the bottom of the frame. With a new pitcher, Kimberly Westenberg, in the circle, UR tacked on three runs on five hits, extending its lead to 6-2.
 
Nicholoff led off the inning with a single, and Hannah Keiper followed with a fielder's choice. After Gorecki singled through the right side and Adryiana Rodriguez pinch-ran for Keiper, another fielder's choice put runners at the corners with two outs for Nowak.
 
Nowak doubled down the right-field line, scoring Rodriguez to make it 4-2, and Hunter Gilbreath followed with a two-run single to right center, scoring both Nowak and Turner to make it a 6-2 lead.
 
In the top of the sixth, White again set the Red Dragons down in order, and while Cortland would plate a run on Meyers' two-out, RBI double in the top of the seventh, White retired Barry to end the inning and finish off the doubleheader sweep for the Yellowjackets.
 
White (2-0) earned the win, allowing one run on four hits, striking out two in 4.0 innings of relief. Keys, who got the start, allowed two runs on three hits, striking out two over 3.0 innings pitched.
 
Barry (3-1) took the loss for Cortland, allowing three runs on five hits, walking and striking out one over 4.0 innings pitched.
 
Gorecki and Nicholoff led UR at the plate, each going 2-for-3 with an RBI, while Kim went 1-for-3 with a double and two runs scored, and Gilbreath drove in a pair, going 1-for-3.
 
Nowak also added a run scored and an RBI, going 1-for-2, as five different Yellowjackets scored a run, and four picked up RBI.
 
Rochester will look to keep on rolling when they host Alfred University at Southside Field on Wednesday, April 5 in a doubleheader beginning at 3:00 p.m.