Oberlin, Ohio - The Oberlin College softball team swept the visiting Kenyon College Owls 7-1 and 1-0 on Monday afternoon at Culhane Field.
The outcome marked the first conference sweep for the Yeowomen since April 25, 2018 when Oberlin beat Hiram College 11-3 and 8-4. It also was the first time Oberlin has ever swept Kenyon in a doubleheader since the program's inception in 2000.
The pitching tandem of
Hailey Alspach and
Katie Austin were absolutely sensational, allowing just one run over 14 innings while combining for 11 strikeouts.
In the lid-lifter, Oberlin took advantage of two Kenyon errors in the second inning to score three runs in the frame. The first run of the game came on a fielder's choice by
Haley Carlson as Alspach appeared to be dead to rights at the plate but did a swim move to the avoid the tag of Sophia Lynch. Two more runs would then come across on a throwing error by the pitcher Sofia Zayas.
Oberlin tack on another run in the third as rookie
Kailey Dunham belted a two-out RBI single back up the box to score
Maria Chutko as she led off the inning with a single.
As Alspach continued to stymie the Owls hitters, Oberlin crafted a two-out rally in the fifth to claim a 6-0 lead. Following another Chutko single,
Mia Brito belted a run-producing double to the gap in right center and then
Alaina Di Dio would send Brito home with a hard-hit single back up the middle.
Oberlin's final run of the game came in the sixth on an RBI groundout by Carlson.
Alspach, who notched her fourth complete game of the year, unfortunately saw her shutout evaporate in the seventh as Madison Friday lifted a solo home run over the wall in center field. Alspach (3-6) struck out five while scattering six hits and going walk-free.
Oberlin had eight hits in the game with Chutko and Dunham each posting a pair.
A native of San Diego, California, Austin turned in the best pitching performance of her career in the nightcap, earning a complete-game two-hit shutout victory while matching a career-high with six strikeouts to go along with two walks.
Kenyon's Allison McCutchen was nearly equally as impressive as she surrendered just three hits and one run in the tough-luck loss to fall to 0-7 in the year.
The lone run of the game came in the home half of the first inning as Chutko led off the game with a double to right center and would later score on a sacrifice fly by Di Dio.
Oberlin had two of its three hits in the first inning and it wasn't until Di Dio's two-out single in the sixth until there was another one.
Kenyon had just four base runners in the contest with one of those coming in the sixth on a walk but Austin induced an inning-ending ground ball double play to squash the threat. She would then sit the Owls down in order in the seventh to finish off the victory.
The wins ran Oberlin's record to 6-12 overall and 2-2 in the NCAC, while Kenyon dropped back to 1-19 and 0-2 in league play.
The Yeowomen go right back to work tomorrow afternoon with a non-conference doubleheader at Bluffton University. First pitch of game one is set for 3:30 p.m.
