SALISBURY, MD – No. 18 University of Rochester softball dropped a pair against the 2nd-ranked Salisbury University Seagulls on Sunday afternoon at the Margie Knight Sea Gull Softball Stadium, dropping game one of its doubleheader, 8-3, and game two, 7-2. With the two losses, the 18th-ranked Yellowjackets wrap up their opening weekend on the Eastern Shore at 1-3, while No. 2 Salisbury remains undefeated at 3-0.
 
GAME ONE: #2 Salisbury 8, #18 Rochester 3
After the 'Jackets went in order in the top of the first, Salisbury quickly took the lead in the bottom of the frame. Abby Mace drew a four-pitch walk and stole second, and Sam Flowers followed with an RBI single, giving the Seagulls a 1-0 lead. A bunt single and an error then made it 2-0, and two batters later, Carrie Jacoby drove in two more with a two-run single, forcing Rochester to make an early pitching change down 2-0.
 
Maddie White relieved Lauren Keys and quickly worked out of the inning with a double play, but the Seagulls led 4-0 after one.
 
In the circle for Salisbury, Isabella Purdy struck out the side, working around Julianna Lyons' two-out single, in the second after pitching a 1-2-3 first, and then kept things rolling, getting three quick outs after Molly Mason led off the third with a hit-by-pitch before the Seagulls got back on the scoreboard.
 
Meghan Reed led off the bottom of the third with a double, and after Natalie Paoli singled to short, the Seagulls attempted to execute a double steal, but Reed was thrown out at home.
 
White then struck out Emily Stockman looking, but Jacoby slapped another RBI single, extending Salisbury's lead to 5-0 before White got out of the inning with another strikeout.
 
The Seagulls would add two more in the fourth, taking advantage of a Rochester fielding error, before the Yellowjackets finally broke through in the top of the sixth.
 
Bailey Nicholoff led off the inning with a single. After Riley Laygo reached on a fielder's choice, Hannah Keiper and Marie Kinchington went back-to-back, Keiper with a two-run blast to center and Kinchington with a solo shot to left-center, cutting the Seagulls' lead to 7-3.
 
Jensen Sminchak then singled as UR looked to keep the rally going, but the sophomore was caught trying to steal second, and Sydney Adolfson struck out the next batter to keep Salisbury in front by four.
 
In the bottom of the sixth, Salisbury tacked on an insurance run against Laygo on Scott's sacrifice bunt. And though the Yellowjackets put two runners on in the top of the seventh, Adolfson struck out Laygo swinging to end the threat and give the Seagulls an 8-3 victory.
 
Purdy (1-0) earned the win for Salisbury, striking out five over four innings pitched, while Keys (1-1) took the loss for UR, allowing four runs on three hits in just a third of an inning. In 3.2 innings of relief, White allowed three runs, just one of which was earned, on six hits, striking out six, while Laygo pitched two innings in her first appearance in the circle, allowing one run on two hits.
 
Keiper led Rochester in the batter's box, going 2-for-3 with a home run, run scored and two RBI, while Kinchington went 1-for-1 with a solo homer.
 
GAME TWO: #2 Salisbury 7, #18 Rochester 2
Once again, after UR went in order in the top of the first, the Seagulls took the early lead in the bottom of the frame. Mace beat out an infield single, stole second, and advanced to third on Reed's single to left. And while Molly Broccolo struck out both Sam Flowers and Paoli, Mace came around to score on a fielder's choice, beating the tag on Reed at third to give Salisbury a 1-0 lead.
 
The Seagulls then added to their lead in the bottom of the second, as Mace's two-out triple brought two more home to make it 3-0, while Flowers beat out an infield single to short, scoring Mace to extend Salisbury's lead to 4-0.
 
Broccolo would settle down over the next few frames, working around a pair of hits in the third and fourth, while the Yellowjackets looked to respond beginning in the top of the third.
 
Mason led off the inning for the 'Jackets and reached on an error, taking second on Nicholoff's infield single. Laygo's single then loaded the bases for Keiper, but Nicole Ortega escaped the bases-loaded jam, getting Keiper to ground into an inning-ending double play to end the threat.
 
In the top of the fifth, the Yellowjackets plated a run, with Mason again leading things off, this time with a double. The junior took third on Savannah Nowak's groundout and scored on Nicholoff's RBI groundout to make it a 4-1 Salisbury lead.
 
Broccolo then worked a scoreless bottom of the frame to keep it at just a three-run contest, but after the 'Jackets went in order to start the sixth, the Seagulls plated three in the bottom of the stanza on three-straight, one-out hits to extend their lead to 7-1.
 
Down six in the top of the seventh, the Yellowjackets would rally, with Jenna Gorecki hitting a one-out, pinch-hit double to get things started, followed by an RBI single by Nicholoff to cut into Salisbury's lead. Laygo then followed with a double to left center, putting runners at second and third with two outs, but Madison Taylor struck out the next batter to finish off the sweep and Salisbury's 7-2 victory.
 
Broccolo (0-2) took the loss for UR, allowing six runs on 12 hits over 5.1 innings pitched, while Ortega (2-0) picked up the win for Salisbury, allowing just one run on five hits over six innings pitched.
 
Laygo led the 'Jackets with three hits in the loss, while Nicholoff went 2-for-4 with two RBI.
 
After a short break, the Yellowjackets are back in action when they begin their spring break trip in Leesburg, FL on Sunday, March 10 with matchups against Kean University and Wisconsin Lutheran College at 10:00 a.m. and 12:30 p.m.