Dramatic Homers Lift Blue Hens Over Elon, Drexel and Into CAA Championship Final

Thursday, May 13

Harrisonburg, VA

2:00 PM

University of Delaware

24-8

Elon

18-21

Delaware

Elon

Photo by: CAA

Dramatic Homers Lift Blue Hens Over Elon, Drexel and Into CAA Championship Final

5/13/2021 9:23:00 PM | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

HARRISONBURG, Va. – Brittney Mendoza and Kailey Christian each belted late inning home runs while Sarah Piening picked up both wins in the circle as the Delaware softball team advanced to the finals of the CAA Championship with a 7-5 victory over Elon and a 5-1 win over Drexel Thursday afternoon.

The Blue Hens, who advance to the CAA finals for the second time in program history and for the first time since 2004, will take on top-seeded and No. 22-ranked James Madison Friday at 12 noon. If Delaware wins that game, a second game will immediately follow for the conference title.

In the Blue Hens' first game of the day, Elon grabbed a 3-0 lead through three innings, before Mendoza put the Blue Hens on the board when she led off the top of the fourth with a long home run to leftcenter. Later in the frame Karolina Flores and Christian crossed the plate when two Phoenix outfielders collided on a flyball hit by Julz Garber, tying the game at 3-3.

However Elon took the lead right back in the bottom of the frame on run-scoring singles by Rebecca Murray and Ally Repko.

Flores opened the top of the sixth with a single, while pinch runner Grace Rudolph eventually scored on a passed ball to make it a 5-4 game.

Delaware then rallied in the seventh, as Lexi Moore singled to center with one out before Mendoza crushed a pitch over the leftfield fence to put the Blue Hens in front. One out later Flores belted a solo homer to center to give UD an insurance run.

Piening then fired a scoreless bottom of the seventh to secure the win, including a strikeout of Drew Menscer to end game. She allowed just three hits and struck out five batters in 3.1 frames of scoreless relief.

In addition to Mendoza's two homers, Flores and Christian also each had two hits in the victory.

The Blue Hens' game against Drexel remained scoreless until the top of the sixth inning, when Rudolph crossed the plate on a wild pitch. The Dragons quickly tied the game in the bottom half on an RBI single by Kristi DiMeo, but Piening then replaced Delani Sheehan in the circle and got out of a two-on, no-out jam to keep the game knotted at 1-1.

After Piening escaped a bases loaded jam in the seventh, Delaware loaded the bases in the eighth on singles by Mendoza and Brooke Glanden before an intentional walk to Halle Kisamore. Christian then belted the first pitch she saw over the centerfield fence for a grand slam, setting off the Blue Hen celebration.

Piening then retired the side in order in the bottom half to earn her second win of the day and send the Blue Hens into Friday's championship round. Piening, who is now 5-0 on the year, allowed just one hit in three scoreless innings of relief, after Sheehan gave up only one run on four hits in the opening five frames.