ELIZABETHTOWN, Pa. --- The No. 13 Moravian College softball team began its 2017 Landmark Conference season by sweeping Elizabethtown College, 11-0 in five innings and 5-2, on the road Saturday afternoon.
The Greyhounds, now 14-2 this spring, had 14 hits in the opener with senior left fielder Julie Siragusa and freshman right fielder Lauren Goetz each going 3-for-3 with three RBIs and a double. Senior first baseman Abby Jeffries was 2-for-3 in the win.
Junior Josie Novak earned the victory in the circle with just two hits allowed and three strikeouts in four innings of action while freshman Paige Lesher tossed the final inning.
The Blue and Grey jumped out to a 6-0 lead in the top of the first inning. Sophomore center fielder Kat Spilman had an RBI single to opening the scoring before Jeffries picked up an RBI on a ground ball. Goetz connected on a two-RBI double while senior designated player Victoria Conner had an RBI single. Siragusa drove in the final run with an RBI single.
Moravian added another four runs in the second inning on an RBI single by Goetz, an error and a two-RBI double by Siragusa. The Hounds finished off the scoring with a run in the fifth inning on an RBI sacrifice fly by freshman right fielder Samantha O'Keefe.
In the second contest, junior Amanda Carisone improved to 8-0 in the circle as she allowed a pair of unearned runs on six hits and two walks to go with three strikeouts in 6.2 innings. Novak came on to earn her first save of the season.
Moravian had nine more hits in the second game from nine different batters. The Greyhounds would take a 1-0 lead in the top of the second inning on an RBI single by Conner while junior catcher Janae Matos had an RBI bases loaded walk in the third inning to make it 2-0.
The Hounds plated three runs in the top of the sixth inning to push the lead to 5-0. Senior pinch hitter Niki Maffettone had a two-RBI double while Siragusa added an RBI double as she moved into fourth in school history with her 37th career double. Elizabethtown would score twice in the bottom of the seventh inning and have the bases loaded before Novak came in to earn the save.
Moravian is scheduled to return to action on Thursday, March 30 in a non-conference doubleheader versus Wilkes University at Blue & Grey Field in Bethlehem with the first game slated for 3:00 p.m. as the Greyhounds look to play their first home contests of the season.