From Washington University Athletics
The No. 3-ranked Washington University in St. Louis softball team opened the 2016 University Athletic Association (UAA) Championship Tournament with a pair of lopsided victories Tuesday at the Seminole Country Softball Complex in Altamonte Springs, Fla.
WashU (10-0, 2-0 UAA) defeated Brandeis University 10-2 in six innings in game one, and then posted a 14-1 win in five innings over New York University in game two. The Bears are off to a 10-0 start for the first time since 2006, and for the fourth time in school history.
WashU continues play in the UAA Championship Wednesday, March 9, with a pair of games against No. 4 Emory University at 10 a.m. (ET) and the University of Rochester at 1 p.m.
#3 WashU 10, Brandeis 2 (Five Innings)
The Bears hit three homeruns in the game-one victory over the Judges. WashU entered the day with one round trippers in its first eight contests.
Sophomore Hera Tang put WashU up 1-0 in its first at-bat with a solo homerun to centerfield. The HR for Tang was the first of her career. Sophomore Ashley Madsen pushed the lead to 2-0 with an RBI double in the second.
Junior Hannah Mehrle made it 3-0 in the top of the third with a long homerun to center. Brandeis (2-4, 0-1 UAA) answered back with two unearned runs in the third off senior Annie Pitkin to trim the lead to 3-2.
The Bears put the game out of reach scoring six runs on four hits in the fifth inning, and took advantage of a crucial error. Junior Janet Taylor drove in a run with an RBI double down the left field line, and then freshman Taylor Arends singled up the middle for an RBI.
After an error by the Brandeis third baseman, junior Halle Steinberg launched a deep home run to left to increase the lead to 9-2.
Pitkin (6-0) allowed six hits and two unearned runs as she tossed her fourth complete game of the year. She added eight strikeouts and walked one.
Arends (2-for-4, run scored, RBI), senior Brooke Hofer (2-for-3, two runs scored), and Tang (2-for-4, homerun, RBI, run scored) had multiple-hit games for WashU. The Bears had 11 hits in the win.
#3 WashU 14, New York 1 (Five Innings)
WashU broke open a one-run game scoring 10 runs on three hits and took advantage of five errors by NYU in the third inning. Mehrle led off the inning with a solo home run, and also added a two-run double. Tang also drove in two runs in the third with an RBI single.
Mehrle went 3-for-3 and just missed the cycle with a double, triple and a homerun. She also had three RBIs and scored three runs. Senior Amanda Kalupa (2-for-2), Tang (2-for-5, two runs scored, two RBIs) and Taylor (2-for-3, two runs scored, two RBIs) also had a pair of hits for WashU. The Bears had 11 hits in the game two victory.
WashU scored a run in the top of the first after Mehrle tripled and then scored on a wild pitch. The Bears made it 2-1 in the second on an RBI double to left by junior Kenzie James.
Sophomore Maggie Clapp (3-0) picked up the win allowing two hits and one earned run in three innings pitched. Sophomore Mackenzie Gauden pitched the final two innings allowing one hit. New York (2-4, 1-1 UAA) made eight errors in the loss.
BEAR NOTEBOOK: The homerun for Mehrle and Steinberg was their first of the season … James recorded the 100th hit of her career in game one … Pitkin has not allowed an earned run in 33 2/3 innings pitched this season with 64 strikeouts … Mehrle leads the UAA in hitting with a .677 batting average … WashU leads the UAA Championship Tournament with .361 batting average and an 0.64 team earned run average.