Score (Game One): Alfred University 6, Elmira College 5
Score (Game Two): Alfred University 4, Elmira College 1
Records: Elmira (7-14, 3-11 E8), Alfred (21-17, 8-6 E8)
Location: Harrington Field -- Alfred, N.Y.
 
ALFRED, N.Y. -- The Elmira College softball team was swept by Alfred University today in EC's final two Empire 8 Conference games of 2018. The Soaring Eagles fell just short of a comeback in a 6-5 loss in the opener, before stumbling in the second bout, 4-1.
 
Game One
The first game of today's twin bill began in Alfred's favor, as the Saxons scored four runs in the first inning. Alfred kicked off the tilt with two singles and a walk to load the bases. Haley Powers plated the first run with an RBI groundout. Jillian Murray then stepped to the plate and belted her first home run of the day over the left-field wall.

Alfred's 4-0 lead lasted until the sixth inning, as both teams remained scoreless for the next five frames. EC's offense got going in the sixth, as McKenzie Slaven '20 scored the first run on an error by the Saxons. Sarah Garner '20 then drove home another run with an RBI single. The highlight of the frame came from Emily Clark '19, who hammered a three-run homer to center field that plated both Garner and Slaven.

The five-run inning gave EC a 5-4 lead in the contest, its first of the afternoon. Unfortunately for the Soaring Eagles, this advantage did not make it through the inning, as Alfred scored two runs in the bottom of the frame to take a 6-5 advantage. With two on and two out, Becca Alexander hit a two-run RBI single to give the Saxons the lead.

In the top of the seventh inning, EC put the tying run on second when Maddy Johnson '19 hit a single, before advancing to second on a wild pitch. With Johnson in scoring position, the game came to a close with a Slaven strikeout, one of six for the Soaring Eagles in the bout.  

In the pitching circle, Slaven went 6.0 innings and struck out three batters. In total, Slaven allowed six runs, all of which were earned.
 
Game Two
Game two was more of a pitching battle, as the two teams combined to score just five runs. Alfred opened the bout's scoring in the third inning when Alexander drove Sydney Saucedo home with an RBI double to left center.

EC got on the board in the top of the fifth inning when Sam Chadbourne '19 began the frame with a double to deep right center. After two consecutive foul outs, Samantha Jenkins '20 plated Chadbourne with a single to center.

The Saxons answered with two runs in the fifth inning and one in the sixth to retake the advantage, 4-1. The highlight of those three runs came off of the bat of Murray, who hit out her second home run of the day to lead off the fifth. This advantage held for the remainder of the tilt, as the Soaring Eagles did not post a base-runner in the seventh.

Katie McDougal '18 got the starting nod in the second tilt, as she went 6.0 innings with two strikeouts. All four of McDougal's four runs allowed in the game were earned.
 
News and Notes

• Elmira is now 7-14 overall this season.
• The Soaring Eagles wrap up E8 play this year with a 3-11 record.
• EC is 1-3 this year in one-run games.
• Clark's home run in game one is her fourth of the season, which is tied for the sixth-highest single-season total in program history.
• With seven homers in her career, Clark is now tied with Lauryn DePaul '10 for sixth in Elmira history.
• The last Soaring Eagle to hit four home runs in a season was Julianne Heggie '16, who hit five as a senior in 2016.
• Johnson has posted a hit in nine straight bouts.
• Johnson is still on pace to break EC's single-season program record with her .508 batting average.
• Johnson's batting average leads the Empire 8.
• Garner has posted a hit in six of the last eight contests.

Up Next
The Soaring Eagles are scheduled to conclude the 2018 campaign on Wednesday, May 2, with a non-league bout against SUNY Canton. The first bout of the twin bill is slated to start at 3:00 p.m. in Canton, New York.