Emmitsburg, Md. (April 15, 2022)--Mount St. Mary's made it 13 wins in a row with a doubleheader sweep of visiting Fairleigh Dickinson at Our Lady of the Meadows Field on Friday afternoon.  Tori Bowles belted a pair of home runs while Amanda Berkley tossed a six-hit shutout to lead the Mount to a 4-0 win in the opening game.  The Mount rallied from a 3-0 deficit in game two, plating the winning run on a Kaia Bonshock RBI double in the bottom of the sixth in a 4-3 victory.

The Mount (20-14, 12-2 NEC) used the long ball to provide all the offense Berkley would need in the 4-0 victory in the opener.  Bowles slammed a solo shot to straight away center field to lead off the bottom of the second to put the Mount on top, 1-0.  Two batters later, Vanessa Martin hit a laser off the shed behind the right-center field fence to push the advantage to 2-0.  Bowles connected for a two-run homer in the bottom of the fourth to give the Mount a commanding 4-0 advantage.

FDU (16-19, 8-6 NEC) threatened in the top of the fifth, loading the bases with two outs to put the tying run at the plate.  FDU's Cassidy Triska then hit a sharp grounder to third that saw Maggie Kane make a diving stop and get the force out at third to end the inning.  The Knights had a leadoff single in the seventh, but Kane snared a Triska line drive and ended the game on a double play when she caught the runner off first base.

Berkley improves to 9-5 on the season with the complete-game victory.  She matched her season high with six strikeouts while not allowing a walk in the contest.  Bowles went 2-for-3 with two home runs and three RBI in the win while Abigyle Perry added two hits in the victory.  Alayna Savaglio took the loss for FDU, allowing four runs in four innings with eight strikeouts.  Malori Bell pitched two innings of scoreless relief for the Knights in game one.

The Knights took advantage of a Mount error to score three times in the top of the first inning to grab the early lead in game two.  Mount starter Olivia Murphy retired the first two batters on groundouts, but Jess DeWitt reached on an error to extend the inning.  Andreya Flores made the Mount pay, drilling a two-run homer for a 2-0 lead.  Sabrina Javorsky followed with a double to deep left field, and Jillian Ward's base hit to right made it 3-0.

The Mount responded quickly, scoring three times in the bottom of the inning to tie the score.  Perry was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning, and Bridgette Gilliano single to right to move Perry to third base.  Gilliano advanced to second on the throw to put two runners in scoring position.  Bowles drove home the first run with an RBI groundout to the pitcher.  After Elizabeth King walked, Martin hit a ball up the middle that the second baseman was able to get to, but not get the forceout.  That base hit drove home Gilliano to cut the deficit to 3-2.  Kane then lined a single to right field that just grazed off the second baseman's leaping attempt.  King was able to dance around the tag at home to even the score.

The fourth inning saw each team threaten, but unable to break the 3-3 deadlock.  In the top of the fourth, FDU put runners on first and second with one out on a base hit and an error.  A groundout moved the runners up, but Mount starter Olivia Murphy was able to get Triska to fly out to right to end the threat.  In the bottom of the inning, Gilliano singled, and then stole second and third base to get into scoring position.  Bonshock was hit by a pitch, and she stole second ahead of a Bowles walk that loaded the bases with two outs.  The Knights were able to get out of the inning when King was called out for interference on a pop out to the pitcher.

The Mount broke the tie in the bottom of the sixth inning.  With two outs, Gilliano walked and stole second base to get into scoring position.  The three steals give Gilliano a team-high 31 on the season.  She is currently fourth in NCAA Division I in stolen bases per game this season.  That set the table for Bonshock, who hit a high fly ball that went over the left fielder's head and bounced off the warning track for an RBI double.

The Knights made it interesting in the top of the seventh when Hailey Ramberg and Triska each singled to put runners on first and second with no outs.  Murphy was able to escape the jam with a strikeout, a fly out, and a grounder back to the pitcher to seal the victory.

Gilliano went 2-for-3 with three steals and two runs scored while Kane added a pair of hits in the win.  Murphy did not allow an earned run in the complete-game victory.

The teams conclude the three-game series tomorrow with a single game at noon at Our Lady of the Meadows Field on campus.

NOTES:  The Mount's 13-game win streak is the sixth-longest current win streak in the nation...Perry has reached base in 21 consecutive games...Perry, who entered the doubleheader 17th in the nation in hit batsman, was hit by a pitch in each of her first two at bats in game two...Berkley has not allowed a run over her past 17 innings pitched...The Mount is now 11-1 at home this season and is now 36-16 at home since 2019.