ROCHESTER, N.Y. – The Alfred University softball team got the bats going in Rochester, beginning the double-elimination portion of the Empire 8 Softball Tournament with an impressive 10-0 shutout of Russell Sage College, from the St. John Fisher College Softball Field on a cool but sunny Tuesday afternoon.
 
The third-seeded Saxons (29-8) moves on to the winner's bracket with the five-inning victory and will face top seed and host St. John Fisher on Thursday at noon. Sage (16-5), the second seed, defeated Utica in the elimination game after the loss to AU and will await the loser of Thursday's Alfred-St. John Fisher contest.
 
It was a dominant performance in the circle and at the plate for the Saxons, who have scored 10 or more runs in all three of their contests against the Gators this season. AU tallied 13 hits, led by two hit performances by junior infielder Ashley Lugo (Hesperia, Calif./Oak Hills), junior outfielder Alyssa Guitron (San Bernardino, Calif./Cajon), junior infielder Tatiana Mejia (North Hills, Calif./John F. Kennedy), and graduate infielder Elena Ceja (Redondo Beach, Calif./Redondo Beach Union). Ceja and Guitron both hit home runs, with Guitron tallying her first career home run, and Ceja and first year infielder Mya Wells (San Ramon, Calif./California) each drove in two RBIs.
 
In the circle, graduate pitcher Jessica Wilcox (Forestville, N.Y./Pine Valley) shut the door on the Gator offense, with her second consecutive complete-game shutout. She gave up just two hits, striking out 11 Sage batters to increase her record to 16-3 on the season.

"I was glad to see our girls come out swinging from the first pitch on," said head coach Luke Wesneski. "We played with excitement and energy the entire game and they played well. Another great performance by Jess and a great offensive day all around. When we are not selfish at the plate good things happen. We took our walks and hits and worked counts and didn't miss our pitches! Congrats to Alyssa on her first career home run. Back to work tomorrow to get ready for Fisher on Thursday. We are looking forward to it."
 
The Saxons scored in each of the first four innings, jumping out on the Gators in the process. In the first inning, Wells hit a two-out, RBI double deep along the right field line and O'Toole singled in the second run in the very next at-bat. In the second, Wilcox and senior outfielder Sydney Saucedo (Whittier, Calif./La Serna) began the frame with singles, leading to an RBI double to left field by sophomore outfielder Isabella Carrillo (Van Nuys, Calif./Birmingham Community Charter). Lugo then brought Carrillo home in the next at-bat with a single through to the right side. Two batters later, Mejia finished the three-run inning with a hard-hit single past the third baseman, as the Saxons took a 5-0 lead.
 
AU turned the power up in the third inning, as Ceja led the inning with a shot to left center field, clearing the wall for a solo home run, her third of the season. In the fourth, Wells drew a walk with the bases loaded, her team-leading 17^th walk of the season, as the Saxons took a 7-0 lead. A few batters later, Ceja struck again with a run-scoring hit, singling through the left side to score Guitron from third base. A wild pitch in the next at-bat scored another run, as the Saxons took advantage with their second three-run inning of the game, leading 9-0.
 
Guitron capped the scoring with another display of Saxon power in the fifth inning. With two outs, the junior sent a pitch deep into dead center field, clearing the fence for her first home run of her career, which gave the Saxons a 10-0 advantage. From there, Wilcox put the finishing touches on the contest, striking out the side in the bottom of the frame as the Saxons earned the run-rule victory.