CLERMONT, Fla. – Despite dropping their first contest to Wheaton (1-0), the Wentworth Institute of Technology softball team (4-6) salvaged their spring break trip, capping the swing with a thrilling 9-8 win against Rutgers-Camden (1-1) that required extra innings.

GAME ONE: WHEATON 11, WENTWORTH 2

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• The Black & Gold took a 1-0 edge in the third inning as a single by sophomore Kyla Igawa (Long Beach, Calif.) drove home a run by freshman Brianna Miller (West Haven, Conn.).
• Wheaton scored three unanswered runs in the fourth inning as singles by senior Lindsey Oliveira (Westport, Mass.) and junior Grace DiBacco (Selkirk, N.Y.) helped bring home runners.
• The Leopards cut the deficit to one in the fifth inning as a single by junior Katie Kranz (Bedford, Mass.) drove home a run by Igawa.
• The Lyons exploded for eight runs in the seventh inning to cement their lead, helped by two runners on base for multiple batters.
• Sophomore Julie Schriver (Moscow, Pa.) led the Leopards in the circle, striking out two, while three student-athletes registered two hits apiece.

GAME TWO: WENTWORTH 9, RUTGERS-CAMDEN 8 (FINAL – 8 INNINGS)

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• With two runners on, a single by Kranz combined with an error drove home a score by Igawa in the first inning, giving Wentworth a 1-0 edge before an Igawa single and a Kranz single drove home one and two runs, respectively, to raise the lead to 4-0.
• In the third inning, the Leopards stretched their lead to 6-0 as a single by graduate student Kaitlin Pettenger (Budd Lake, N.J.) brought home two runs.
• Another single by Pettenger in the fifth drove home another run, marking a 7-0 lead, before a single by freshman Kelsey Medalia (Tacoma, Wash.) helped push the advantage to 8-0.
• Rutgers-Camden cut the deficit to 8-3 in the fifth inning, helped by a double from senior Kamryn Kennedy (Blackwood, N.J.), before they rattled off five straight runs in the seventh inning to knot the game at eight-all.
• The Black & Gold took a 9-8 edge in the eighth as an error brought Schriver to first and Medalia home untouched. Three straight outs for Rutgers-Camden in the bottom of the eighth helped the Leopards hold on for the win.
• Schriver earned the win in extra innings after junior Jess Rowe (Yardley, Pa.) struck out four in just over six innings of work. Offensively, Pettenger and Kranz paced the Leopards with three hits and three RBI apiece.

SERIES NOTES:

• The Leopards lead the all-time series, 2-0.

NEXT UP:

• The Leopards head back home tomorrow morning and hold their season opener at home against Brandeis next Saturday, March 16.
  
  

For the latest on Wentworth Athletics, follow the Leopards via social media on "X," Facebook and Instagram.