LYNCHBURG, Va. – The University of Notre Dame Fighting Irish softball team split a doubleheader with George Washington and Liberty Saturday evening at Kamphuis Field. The Irish handled George Washington, 8-0 before suffering a 6-1 loss to the Flames. The loss snapped a nine-game winning streak for Notre Dame. Notre Dame is now 14-4 on the season.
Alexis Holloway and Shannon Becker combined for the shutout win in the circle against George Washington. Holloway started, throwing the first 4.0 innings, recording four strikeouts and scattering two hits. Becker earned the save with three innings, four strikeouts allowing just three hits.
Emma Clark, Leea Hanks and Sarah Genz led the offense in game one, each finishing with three hits. Hanks and Genz added two RBI, with Genz connecting on two doubles. Hanks scored three times, as Clark, Karina Gaskins, Jane Kronenberger and Cassidy Grimm each added an RBI in the win.
Payton Tidd started the nightcap in the circle, but never quite found her footing. She allowed four earned runs in an inning plus before giving way to Holloway. Holloway worked the last 5.0 innings, scattering four hits, two runs, one earned and struck out six.
Grimm led the offense in the nightcap with a 3-for-3 game. Clark added two hits. Hanks finished with a hit and drove in all three runs. Sweet, Genz, Tidd and Quinn Biggio each added a hit in the contest.
The Irish scored in the top of the second inning against George Washington. Genz led off with a double to right and moved up on a ground out from Carlli Kloss. Grimm laid down the squeeze and Genz had a crafty slide around the tag for the first run of the day.
Notre Dame went on to score three more in the top of the third. Clark led the inning off with a single and scored from first when Hanks doubled down the left field line. Gaskins hammered a double to the wall in left to bring in Hanks and Genz followed with a single to bring in Emily Tran who pinch ran to go up 4-0.
Clark got a rally started again the next inning with a single up the middle. She stole second and scored when Hanks sent a single through the right side. Genz delivered again as a double to left center scored Hanks.
The last two innings saw single runs come home for the Irish. Kronenberger drove in a run with a single through the left side in the sixth, and Clark drove a single to the shortstop to score Sweet for the eighth run of the game.
The nightcap started all Liberty as the Flames scored two runs in the first and second innings. With two outs in the first, the Flames rallied with a couple walks and two singles to score a pair in the first. In the second inning, it was a walk and a two-run homer that extended the lead to 4-0, Flames.
Notre Dame got on the board in the top of the third. Sweet led off with a double up the middle and moved up on a pair of ground outs to cut the lead to 4-1.
Liberty got a run back in the bottom of the fifth as a walk, a single and two fielder’s choices brought in a run to extend it to 5-1 in favor of the Flames. A walk came around to score on a double in the sixth, extending the lead to 6-1.
Notre Dame batted in the top of the seventh. Grimm and Biggio had back-to-back singles to start the inning. A fielder’s choice kept two on as a ground out moved them into scoring position. Hanks drove a single to right center to score two and cut the lead to 6-3. Notre Dame couldn’t continue the comeback and came up short.
Up Next
The Irish will complete their competition at the Liberty Softball Invitational tomorrow morning as they are set to take on Lehigh at 9 a.m., followed by Rutgers at 11:30.