ALFRED, NY – The Alfred University softball team swept a non-conference doubleheader with visiting SUNY Geneseo Monday afternoon at Harrington Field.
 
The Saxons rallied in both games, winning the opener, 9-4, before scoring three runs in their last at-bats to take a 3-2 victory in the second game. With the sweep, the Saxons improve to 18-16 on the season.
 
In the opener, AU spotted the visitors an early lead. After Geneseo's first two batters were retired to start the first, the Knights got five straight hits to score three times. The Saxons got one run back in the bottom of the frame when third baseman  Liz Thompson (Horseheads, NY/Horseheads) singled, stole second and came in to score on a single by shortstop Haley Powers (Newark, DE/St. Georges Tech).
 
Thompson's steal was her 26th of the year, which set a new school single-season record. She came into the game tied with Nicole Hedrick (2010) for the school mark.
 
After Geneseo got its lead back to three with a run in the second, Alfred pulled to with a run with a two-run third. Outfielder Hannah Lawrence (Spencer, NY/Spencer-Van Etten) led off with a single before Thompson belted her 11^th homerun of the season over the left-centerfield fence to make it 4-3.
 
The Saxons took the lead with three run in the fifth. Lawrence singled with one out and Thompson walked before outfielder Brooke Hockeborn (Horseheads, NY/Horseheads) reached on a fielder's choice. With two outs, Dominique D'Andrea (Waterford, NJ/St. Joseph) reached on an error to load the bases and Powers followed with a bases-clearing double to put the Saxons up 6-4.
 
AU plated three insurance runs in the sixth. Pitcher Jessica Wilcox (Forestville, NY/Pine Valley) walked and was lifted for pinch runner Jillian Murray (Eden, NY/Eden). With two outs, Lawrence singled and Thompson walked to load the bases and Hockeborn tripled to left-center to bring in all three runners.
 
Wilcox settled down after a rocky start and went the distance, allowing four earned runs on 11 hits and striking out three to improve to 3-1 on the season.
 
Powers went 2-for-3 and drove in four runs and Lawrence was 3-for-3 with two runs scored. Hockeborn drove in three runs and scored once and Thompson reached safely four times, scoring three runs.
 
Thompson's sacrifice fly to left with no outs in the seventh capped a rally from two runs down in the nightcap.
 
Facing a 2-0 deficit and down to their last at-bats, the Saxons scored three times in the final frame. First baseman Kelley Staub (Eden, NY/Eden) led off with a double into the right-center gap and scored when pinch-hitter Brooke Banks (Odessa, DE/Middletown) doubled down the right field line.
 
Lawrence re-entered for Banks and scored when catcher Lu Krawczyk (West Seneca, NY/West Seneca) doubled off the fence in left field. Krawczyk moved to third on the throw home and scored the walk-off winning run on Thompson's fly to medium left field.
 
Krawczyk finished 2-for-3 with a run scored and another driven in, while Staub (run), Murray and Powers each had a base hit.
 
Kerri Keeler (Jamesville, NY/Jamesville-DeWitt) earned the complete-game pitching win for the Saxons, allowing two earned runs on a six hits and striking out five to improve to 4-8.
 
AU is in action next on Wednesday, April 26, when the Saxons play their home finale, a 3 p.m. non-league doubleheader against visiting RIT.