ROCHESTER, N.Y. – It took late game heroics and timely hitting from the University of Rochester on Saturday as they came out winners by scores of 5-4 and 9-4 to earn the doubleheader sweep over the Ithaca College softball team. With the pair of wins, Rochester (13-1 LL record) earned the right to host the upcoming Liberty League Championship tournament. The Bombers (11-3) will be seeded No. 2, RPI third (10-4), and Skidmore fourth (7-7).
 
This year, it is a return to normal with a three-day double-elimination format. On Thursday, Rochester will host No. 4 Skidmore at noon. Game two has Ithaca vs. RPI at 2:30 p.m. Friday's action starts at 10 a.m. with the winners from games one and two playing each other. The winner of game three advances to Saturday's championship round. Game four has the losers of games one and two playing at 12:30 p.m. Game five, scheduled for 3 p.m., has the loser of game three (Friday's opener) against the winner of game four. On Sunday, the game three winner will play the game five winner. A game seven will be played only if both teams from game six have one loss at that point.

Rochester 5, Ithaca 4 (F)
The University of Rochester made a seventh inning comeback to knot the score at four runs apiece. The Bombers went down in order in the top of the eighth frame and in the bottom of the inning Hunter Gilbreath hit a one-out walk-off homer to complete the late innings rally. That win clinched Rochester the No. 1 seed in the postseason tournament.

Emma Kindblom led-off the game with a slapped single right back up the middle, advanced to second on a wild pitch, and third on an Allison Dell'Orto single setting up the RBI opportunity. Julia Loffredo cashed in on the chance on a fielder's choice giving the Bombers the early 1-0 lead.

UR scored two in the bottom of the second, but that was all that Riley Piromalli gave up as she left after giving up two hits in the bottom of the sixth frame.

Trailing 2-1, the Bombers tied it up in the fifth inning when Kindblom scored again this time on a RBI single from Allison Dell'Orto. IC would then add two more runs in the top of the sixth frame as the inning started with Sela Scheinman blasting her second homer of the season. The IC offense reloaded with Kailey Collins doubling, then advancing to third on a Tava Kasper single before eventually scoring when Kira Flegenheimer grounded into a fielder's choice.

Anna Cornell (10-5) came into the game in relief and escaped the sixth inning jam, but the Yellowjackets got to her in the seventh to tie the game before giving up the game-winner.
 
Rochester 9, Ithaca 4
The Ithaca offense stayed red-hot as Tava Kasper plated the opening two runs of the game when she hit a deep double to left field. Scoring on Kasper's double was Allison Dell'Orto and Julia Loffredo. Rochester had an immediate response with Hunter Gilbreath plating a pair on her single to left field.

Dell'Orto smashed a two-run homer in the bottom of the second inning to give IC the 4-2 lead. The Yellowjackets shortstop Ally Kim matched it with a solo shot in the bottom half of the inning to make it 4-3.

The first three hitters in the third walked. Eventually, Kristen Myers scored on a wild pitch. Molly Mason singled home Bailey Nicholoff. That put Rochester ahead, 5-4. The Yellowjackets stretched it to 9-4 on Kim's steal of home, an RBI single by Gilbreath, and a two-run double by Nicholoff.

Bella Scolaro was credited for taking the loss in the circle, her first of the season.

Ithaca will return to action on Thursday when they take on RPI at 2:30 p.m. on Southside Field in Rochester, N.Y.