Penn softball shows no mercy at home in doubleheader sweep of Lafayette

Back at home again, the Red and Blue showed no mercy. 

After a mixed weekend at the Liberty Classic, Penn softball put up two decisive wins against Lafayette at Penn Park. In both games, the Quakers (5-2) triggered the mercy rule, leading the Leopards by eight runs after five innings of play.

The Red and Blue came into the doubleheader off of an eventful weekend in Lynchburg, Va. In their season opener, they defeated Butler 1-0, with senior Jennifer Brann pitching a complete game. At the end of day one, the Quakers fell to Liberty. After a successful day two, clocking two wins against Hofstra and Elon, the Red and Blue concluded the weekend with a loss to Fairfield. 

In the first Wednesday game, sophomore Emma Nedley hit a home run in the bottom of the first inning with the bases loaded, putting four points on the scoreboard. The Quaker’s couldn’t be stopped there, and finished the first inning six points ahead of the Leopards. The Red and Blue continued building on their lead from there in the second inning, with freshman Sarah Schneider stealing home to score for the second time in the afternoon. 

The game calmed down from there, with the Quakers maintaining their lead at seven despite a home run from the Leopards to put up two points on the scoreboard for the away team. In the bottom of the fourth inning, a ground ball from Nedly sent Brann home, followed by Schneider again to round out the first half of the game with nine points for the Red and Blue. 

With Lafayette still trailing at three points, the Quakers entered the bottom of the fifth inning with eight points, thanks to another trip home from Brann. From there, Junior Tabitha Dyer hit a double to center field, sending juniors Kayla Ketring and Berit Batterton home, triggering the mercy rule at 11-3. 

The second go around was even more decisive. 

Thanks to an explosive first inning, Penn entered the second inning ahead of the Leopards 8-1. After scoring again in the second inning, three scoreless innings meant that the mercy rule was triggered at the end of the fifth inning yet again. The final score was 9-1. 

This Friday the Quakers will fly out to Longwood FL. to compete in the Spring Games. They will play a series of six games over a four day stretch against a variety of teams including No. 12 Florida State and No. 7 Florida. They will return to Penn Park the following weekend to face off with Yale in the Ivy League season opener.