Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 Tampa, Fla. – (3/8/2017) – Chestnut Hill College found their swing a little too late in the opener of today's doubleheader at the University of Tampa, scoring the last three runs of a 5-3 final in the Spartans' favor. Unfortunately, the late Griffin offense did not transfer to the second game as the home side mounted an 8-0 advantage before eventually securing the sweep with a five-inning 13-2 final.
 
Senior center fielder Ashleigh Sharp (Dresher, Pa.) recorded two hits (2-for-3) and knocked in two of the Scarlet and Gold runs in the opener with a sixth-inning single. In game two, sophomore third baseman Lily Winn (Los Angeles, Calif.) (2-for-3) and sophomore first baseman Kaya Swanek (Pittston, Pa.) (2-for-2) each recorded two hits, but the Griffins' first run crossed on a fourth-inning sacrifice fly from senior pinch hitter Corie Apodaca (Ontario, Calif.) and the second on a passed ball just two batters later.
 
Chestnut Hill College (0-6) put a runner aboard in their first three at-bats of game two, but it was not until the fourth inning that they were able to get a run across the plate. In the fourth inning, the Griffins greeted a reconfigured University of Tampa (17-3) defense with a single from sophomore catcher Brielle Riotte (Elizabeth, N.J.) and a Swanek double to center field. An Apodaca sacrifice fly brought sophomore pinch runner Jordan Clark (Greenwood, Del.) home, 8-1. And after a fly to left and a passed ball, Swanek was able to score, cutting the Spartan lead to 8-2. Unfortunately, the University of Tampa added five runs in the bottom of the frame, 13-2, and only surrendered a two-out Winn single before closing out the game in five innings.
 
A lead-off single, a sacrifice bunt, and a one-out double to left center got the Spartans on the scoreboard in their first at-bat of the evening, 1-0. They added three runs in the bottom of the third inning with four hits and a walk, 4-0, and a fifth run in the fifth inning with two hits and a sacrifice fly, 5-0. Chestnut Hill College threatened with two hits in the fourth inning, but it they did break the shutout until the sixth inning. There, a lead-off walk to sophomore right fielder Ariel Magee (North Cape May, N.J.) and a one-out error put two Griffins aboard. Two batters later, Sharp's two-out single to left field scored two runs and cut the margin to 5-2. In the seventh inning, back-to-back one-out walks and a two-out Riotte single narrowed it to 5-3, but the Griffins would get no closer with the next batter fouling out to the Spartan backstop.
 
The Chestnut Hill College softball team continues play tomorrow, Thursday, March 9, with respective 1:00 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. contests against Morrisville State College and fellow, Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) member, Bloomfield College.