Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 Houghton, N.Y. – The Ithaca College softball team started its Empire 8 season on a high note after sweeping a doubleheader against Houghton.
 
The Bombers clinched the first game 10-0 in six innings and won the second, 5-2.
 
Alex Wright and Vanessa Brown led Ithaca with four hits apiece on the day. Wright notched three RBI and Brown finished with one.  
 
Game 1
The Bombers took the first game from the Highlanders in six innings, scoring 10 runs on 15 hits.
 
Senior Jessie Fleck got the Bombers going in the top of the first inning, singling to center field, then stealing second to get Ithaca its first runner in scoring position with two outs in the first. Sophomore Alex Wright then recorded her first triple of the season, scoring Fleck to give the Bombers a 1-0 advantage.
 
Ithaca got out of the bottom of the first with no damage done after sophomore Haley Congdon recorded two strikeouts.
 
Houghton shut down the first two batters in the top of the second, but sophomore Alex Kimmel recorded an infield single and then stole second and third to give Ithaca another runner in scoring position. Classmate Nikkey Skuraton came up big at the plate, singling through the left side and scoring Kimmel to give Ithaca a 2-0 lead.
 
The Highlanders got their first baserunner of the game in the bottom of the second, with Taylor Sile singling to left field. Congdon then got two of the next three batters swinging to get out the inning with no runs pushed across.
 
Sophomore Vanessa Brown received a free pass in the form of a walk in the top of the third, then stole second with one down. Wright stepped up to the plate next, coming up with another huge hit, singling to center field and scoring Brown from second to give Ithaca a 3-0 lead. Sophomore Hannah Anderson then singled through the left side, getting her first RBI of the game, scoring Wright to give the Bombers a 4-0 lead.
 
The Bombers forced Houghton to go three-and-out once again in the bottom of the third. Congdon picked up her fifth strikeout of the game in the process.
 
With one out in the fourth inning, Skuraton was hit by a pitch and advanced to third on a single down the right field line from senior Gabbie Litz. Junior Emily Bloom reached base on a fielder's choice, scoring Skuraton to give Ithaca a 5-0 lead. Brown followed up on the next play with a single to left field, advancing Bloom to third. Houghton got out of the inning with a fly-out, limiting any more damage by the Ithaca bats.
 
McKenzie Marti reach first on a bunt to start out the bottom of the fourth for the Highlanders and Sile reached on an error to give Houghton two baserunners with one out. But, with Houghton threatening, the Bombers forced Kaylee Jentsch to line out into a double-play to end the frame.
 
Sophomore Annie Cooney doubled to left to start off the fifth inning then scored on a center field single delivered by freshman Shannon Grage, giving the Bombers a 6-0 lead. Skuraton then doubled to left-center field, scoring Grage and giving Ithaca a 7-0 lead.
 
In the bottom of the fifth inning, the Highlanders had two consecutive fly-outs, but back-to-back walks gave the team a runner in scoring position. Ithaca was able to get out of the inning with no damage thanks to an inning-ending groundout.
 
Brown singled to left field with one down in the top of the sixth inning, then on the next play Wright came up with her second triple of the game, scoring Brown. Wright ended up scoring on an error, giving Ithaca a 9-0 lead in the top of the sixth.
 
Houghton had a pitching change after Wright's triple, bringing Nicole Fata to the circle. Anderson kept the hits coming for Ithaca, singling to the shortstop. Grage walked on the next play and Anderson advanced to second with two outs in the frame. Freshman Rebecca DiSerio singled down the right field line, scoring Anderson and picking up her first RBI of her career.  
 
Houghton ended the game with three consecutive groundouts to shortstop.  
 
The Bombers outhit the Highlanders 15-3, with Wright leading the way with three hits, three RBI and two runs scored. Congdon threw a complete game for Ithaca, allowing three hits and striking out five.
 
Game 2
 
The Bombers could not get much offense going in the first few innings, but broke through for four runs in the seventh to win, 5-2.
 
The first inning was three-up, three-down for both squads, with Jentsch picking up her first strikeout of the day for Houghton and freshman Emily Holden recording two strikeouts for Ithaca.
 
The top of the second looked eerily similar for the Bombers, with Houghton forcing them into a three-and-out situation. Jentsch picked up another strikeout in the frame.
 
The Highlanders recorded their first hit of the game in the bottom of the second frame on a Sile single to center field. But after the leadoff hit, Holden came back to strike out the next two batters and force the final into a lineout to get out of the inning.
 
The Bombers started the third inning with back-to-back singles from freshman Haley Gaffney and Holden. Both runners were able to advance to second and third on a passed ball with only one out, but Houghton was able to get the final two Ithaca batters to ground out, ending the scoring threat.  
 
Houghton went three-up, three-down in the bottom of the third inning, to keep the game knotted at zero.
 
Once again the Bombers were able to lead off the inning with a single, this time from Brown. The sophomore advanced to second on an Abby Shields single through the left side and Ithaca loaded up the bases on the next play after Anderson was smoked by a pitch. Jentsch walked Gaffney, allowing everyone to move up 60 feet and Ithaca to put its first run on the board.
 
In the bottom of the fourth, Sile recorded a two-out single down the left field line, but the Bombers forced the next batter into a lineout, sustaining any run the Highlanders might make.
 
Ithaca had an opportunity to score in the top of the fifth after a two-out single and a stolen base from Brown, but the Highlanders ended the inning with a groundout to keep Ithaca's lead at 1-0.
 
Houghton's leadoff batter reached base after an Ithaca error to kick off the bottom of the fifth inning, but Ithaca forced Houghton into three consecutive fly-outs to end the frame.
 
Anderson singled through the right side with one out in the sixth inning and advanced to second on a stolen base and to third on a Gaffney groundout, but Houghton forced Holden into a fly-out to end the frame.   
 
Holden notched two more strikeouts in the bottom of the sixth innings, bringing her strikeout total to nine in the game.
 
Fleck bunted for an infield single with one down in the top of the seventh inning and then junior Allie Colleran doubled down the left field line to bring Fleck around and give the Bombers a 2-0 lead. Colleran advanced to third on a passed ball, then scored on a mishandled Brown hit to give Ithaca a 3-0 advantage.
 
The hits kept coming for the Bombers, with an Alex Wright double down the left field line, advancing Brown to third. Cooney grounded out to the shortstop, scoring Brown and advancing Wright to third. Anderson kept the hit party going, singling to center field and scoring Wright to give Ithaca a 5-0 lead. Houghton was able to get the third out, but not before Ithaca pushed four runs across in the frame.
 
With their backs against the wall, Houghton was able to get their first two baserunners on from two free passes and both advanced on a wild pitch. The Highlanders loaded the bases with a walk and then Foss stepped up with a big hit to score Sile, bringing the score to 5-1. Houghton put another run across after an error on the catcher, closing the gap to 5-2, but Ithaca was able to get the final batter to fly-out to clinch the win.
 
Ithaca finished the game with 10 hits, compared to Houghton's three. Brown and Anderson both notched two hits in the game. Holden finished the game with a career-best 10 strikeouts.
 
Ithaca is back in action this weekend when the squad opens the home portion of its schedule against Nazareth on Saturday at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. in a conference matchup. Live stats and video will be available for the doubleheader.