CLERMONT, FL – The Alfred University softball team split two games Monday morning on the second day of the Saxons' Spring Break trip to Florida. AU claimed an 11-2 five-inning win over Sage College before dropping a 4-0 decision to Moravian.

Against Sage, AU (2-2) jumped on the Gators early, plating six runs in the bottom of the first and adding three more an inning later to take a 9-0 lead after two. Sophomore Dominique D'Andrea (Waterford, NJ/St. Joseph) had two big hits during the outburst, blasting a two-run homerun in the first and adding a run-scoring double in the second.

Five of the Alfred's runs in the first were unearned, as the Saxons benefited from three Sage errors. Freshman second baseman Jillian Murray (Eden, NY/Eden) had an RBI double in the frame and later came in to score.
           
Murray walked to lead off the second and scored when junior shortstop Haley Powers (Newark, DE/St. Georges Tech) reached on an error. D'Andrea followed with a double to left to plate Powers, and later scored on a wild pitch.
           
After Sage scored a run in the top of the third, the Saxons responded with two of their own to take an 11-1 lead. Senior third baseman Liz Thompson (Horseheads, NY/Horseheads) singled leading off and later scored on a Murray groundout, and sophomore Amanda Shaffer (Sandyston, NJ/Kittattinny Regional) reached on an error and came around to score on a single by sophomore Lea Georgatos (Emerson, NJ/Immaculate Conception).
           
Sage added a run in the fourth to close out the scoring. D'Andrea went 2-for-2 with two runs scored and three RBIs to pace the Saxon bats, and also earned the pitching win. She allowed an earned run on three hits over three innings while striking out three and walking three. Murray relieved in the top of the fourth and went two innings, allowing an earned run on two hits while striking out three and walking two.

Murray (two RBIs), Thompson and Powers each scored two runs for the Saxons.
           
The Saxons were held to one hit – a fourth inning single by senior leftfielder Brooke Hockeborn (Horseheads, NY/Horseheads) in the loss to Moravian.
           
Junior pitcher Shannon Schaefer (Westfield, NJ/Westfield) started for the Saxons and allowed three earned runs on six hits while striking out two. Junior Kerri Keeler (Jamesville, NY/Jamesville-DeWitt) came on in the sixth inning and allowed an earned run on two hits, striking out one.
           
AU returns to action with a pair of games Tuesday (March 7): at 8 a.m. against College of St. Benedict and 10:30 against Immaculata.