From Case Western Reserve University Athletics
The Case Western Reserve University softball team completed a perfect home-opening weekend with a sweep of a doubleheader over Brandeis University at Mather Park on Saturday afternoon, picking up a 5-0 win over the Judges in the early contest and a 12-1 victory in five innings in the late affair.
The two wins raised the Spartans record to 17-6 overall and 4-4 in the UAA, while Brandeis fell to 3-9 overall and 0-4 in the conference.
Junior Nicole Doyle led the Spartans at the plate with a three-for-six performance including one home run and four runs batted in, while freshman Arisa Cleaveland was also three-for-six with three RBI's on the day.
Game 1: CWRU 5, Brandeis 0
The Spartans made the most of their seven hits and took advantage of two errors from the Judges to claim a 5-0 win over Brandeis in the early game.
CWRU broke through for one run in the bottom of the first after an error by Brandeis allowed Cleaveland to score. The score remained 1-0 until the bottom of the second, when sophomore Ilissa Hamilton drilled her first career home run as a Spartan over the left center field fence to increase the lead to 2-0.
The Spartans added three more runs in the bottom of the fifth, including RBI singles from both senior Maren Waldner and Cleaveland to give CWRU the 5-0 advantage.
Hamilton went the distance for a four-hit shutout, the Spartans third shutout of the 2018 campaign. She pitched seven scoreless innings, allowing four hits and striking out eight batters, while walking only one batter, en route to earning the win to improve to 7-3 for the year.
Scottie Todd took the loss for Brandeis in the game, falling to 1-4 for the season.
Game 2: CWRU 12, Brandeis 1 (5 innings)
The Spartans jumped out to a 4-1 lead after two innings, and tacked on eight more runs in the fourth, en route to a run-rule shortened victory over the Judges in the second game of the day.
Doyle drove in a game-high four runs in the game and hit her third home run of the season, while Cleaveland and freshman Dusstyn Reynolds each drove in a pair of runs.
CWRU put two runs on the board in the first inning after Doyle hit a two-run home run to left center. Brandeis scored their first run of the day in the top of the second, but the Spartans quickly answered in the bottom half of the inning after a two-run RBI single from Cleaveland increased the lead to 4-1.
The Spartans put the game out of reach with eight runs in the fourth, extending the advantage to 12-1.
Freshman Sidney Brannam pitched the first four innings, allowing just one earned run on four hits, while striking out one batter. She improved to 8-3 with the victory. Senior Katie Dzierwa wrapped up the victory with a scoreless inning of relief, yielding just two hits.