University of Delaware Athletics
University of Delaware
UNCW
Blue Hens Bounce Back in Nightcap To Split Doubleheader at UNCW
4/9/2016 6:18:00 PM | Softball
• Game 1 Boxscore
• Game 2 Boxscore
WILMINGTON, N.C. -- The University of Delaware softball team bounced from a disappointing 4-3 loss in the opener by posting a 10-0 victory in five innings during the nightcap as the Blue Hens split a Colonial Athletic Association doubleheader with UNCW Saturday afternoon at Bozeman Field.
Delaware (23-13, 5-3 CAA) let a three-run slip away during the opener, but immediately responded by scoring three runs in the first inning during the nightcap. Leanna Gearhart led off the game with a walk, and she came around to score when Gabby Klecko reached on a UNCW (22-16, 2-5 CAA) 
error. One out later Anna Steinmetz blasted a two-run homer to centerfield, her 10th of the season, to give the Blue Hens an early 3-0 lead.
Shelby Jones opened the second with a single, and two outs later she crossed the plate on a double by Gearhart.
After Gabby Klecko walked, both runners scored when Mariah Kondravy reached on an error to increase the margin to six. Jones added a home run to left in the third, before Delaware tacked on three runs the following frame.
Hannah George led off the fourth with a single, and she eventually scored when Kondravy reached on another Seahawks error.
Gearhart and Klecko then crossed the plate when Steinmetz reached on an error to close the scoring.
Meanwhile Blue Hen pitcher Kiersten Coffman (left) fired a two-hit shutout, striking out seven while walking just two, to win her 14th game of the season.
The Blue Hens scored a run during the top of the first inning of the opener when Gearhart led off with a walk, stole second, moved to third on a Klecko single, and scored on a groundout by Kondravy.
Delaware added two runs in the third as Gearhart reached on an error and eventually came around to score on a Kondravy single, before Klecko crossed the plate when Carolyn Szymanski reached on a fielder's choice.
The Seahawks got on the board during the bottom of the fifth on an RBI single by Lacey Fox, before Kelsey Bryan scored when Hannah Adamczyk reached on a Blue Hen error to make it a 3-2 game. Merritt Wilkinson then led off the sixth with a single and crossed the plate on a sacrifice fly by Lauren Moore to tie the game, while Ashley Best drilled a walkoff homer with two away in the bottom of the seventh to give UNCW the comeback win.
Coffman took the loss for the Blue Hens after allowing one run in one inning of work, while Seahawks reliever Peyton Jordan tossed five scoreless frames to improve to 12-5 on the year.
Delaware and UNCW will conclude their weekend series on Sunday with a 1 p.m. game at Bozeman Field.
Game Notes:
• Steinmetz is the third player in UD history to hit double digit homers in a season (Kondravy-15, 2015; Michelle Grap-13, 2010)
• Jones moved into fifth place in Blue Hen history with 11 career longballs, and needs one hit to reach 100 for her career
• Gearhart scored five runs on the day and now has 38 for the year, two shy of the UD single season record
• Delaware reached double figures for the third time this season and posted its eighth shutout during the nightcap
• UD recorded its largest margin of victory in a CAA game since a 14-4 win at JMU on Apr. 2, 2012
• Delaware stole seven bases and now has 83 for the season, tying the school record set by the 1989 squad
FOR MORE INFORMATION: Contact Kevin Tritt at: ktritt@udel.edu (email) / 302-831-8715 (office) / 302-383-5005 (cell)
