Softball Stuns Iowa State During First Game of Doubleheader, Defeats Lehigh 9-2 in Second Game

Saturday, February 24

Charlottesville, Va.

10 AM

University of Delaware

7-4

Iowa State

7-5

Iowa State

Delaware

Photo by: Michael Riccio

Softball Stuns Iowa State During First Game of Doubleheader, Defeats Lehigh 9-2 in Second Game

2/24/2024 10:46:00 PM | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2 Photo Gallery Photo Gallery 2

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – University of Delaware softball swept a doubleheader against Iowa State and Lehigh during day two of the Rawlings Classic at University of Virginia. Delaware shocked Iowa State with a come-from-behind victory in the seventh inning of game one, 7-6, The Blue Hens scored six runs with two outs in the seventh, with Gianna Costaro hitting a game-tying three-run home run and Julia Boyet following it up with a walk-off home run. Ryleigh Thomas highlighted Delaware in game two by earning her first career win, hits, and RBIs.

HEN HIGHLIGHTS VS IOWA STATE

Costaro went 1-for-3 with the game-tying three-run home run.
Boyet went 1-for-3 with the walk-off home run and added a sacrifice fly.
Chloe Blantz went 1-for-2 with two runs scored and a walk.
Sydney Shaffer went 1-for-2 with two RBIs and a walk.
Katie Scheivert went 1-for-3 with a walk.

HEN HIGHLIGHTS VS LEHIGH

Thomas earned the win by pitching four innings, and allowed just two hits and two runs. She also went 2-for-2 at the plate with a double, two RBIs, and a run scored.
Julz Garber and Costaro went 2-for-3 with two runs scored and a walk and RBI.
Boyet went 2-for-4 with two RBIs.
Shaffer went 2-for-4 with an RBI.
Morgan Hess went 1-for-3 with a walk and an RBI. Shealso pitched the final three innings in relief and allowed just two hits, no runs, a walk, and three strikeouts.
Scheivert went 1-for-3 with two runs and a walk.

HOW IT HAPPENED VS IOWA STATE

After two Iowa State runs came across in the top of the first, Delaware got one back in the bottom half. Two hit by pitches and a walk loaded the bases for Boyet, who hit a sacrifice fly to bring home Blantz.
Morgan Hess stranded runners at first and second in the second and worked a hitless third inning with no runs scored.
Iowa State tacked on another run in the fourth after two runners reached on infield hits and an RBI single brought home a third run. Winburn came in and worked out of a bases-loaded jam with a groundout.
Winburn worked a scoreless fifth inning as well. Iowa State hit a three-run home run in the top of the sixth inning to go up 6-1.
A double play turned by Winburn, Scheivert, and Costaro ended the top of the seventh.
After the first two hitters got out, Kristin Luzon hit a pinch-hit single to begin Delaware's seventh-inning rally. Julz Garber reached on an infield single and Blantz walked to load the bases. In an 0-2 count, Shaffer brought home Veronica Diomede and Garber with a single. In another 0-2 count, Costaro hit a game-tying three-run home run. Boyet followed with a walk-off home run, completing Delaware's comeback and a 7-6 win.

HOW IT HAPPENED VS LEHIGH

Thomas stranded two runners in the first inning after Lehigh scored a run and a runner at second base in the second, but Lehigh went up 2-0.
Scheivert singled in the second with two outs to put two runners on. Thomas hit a two-run double on the first pitch to tie the game, her first collegiate hit and RBIs.
Thomas pitched a hitless third inning. Delaware gave Thomas the lead in the bottom half after Garber walked and Shaffer singled to put two runners on for Costaro. Costaro singled up the middle to score Garber and gave Delaware a 3-2 lead.
Thomas worked a perfect fourth inning with a strikeout. Delaware responded in the bottom of the inning with five runs. Garber had an RBI single to score Scheivert, and Blantz brought home Thomas on a groundout to make it 5-2. Shaffer then doubled home Garber, and Boyet hit a two-run double to score her and Costaro, who walked, to make it 8-2.
Hess came on in relief and pitched a hitless fifth and sixth inning with strikeouts in each. Hess added an insurance run in the bottom of the sixth inning with an RBI single to score Costaro.
Hess finished off the game with a scoreless seventh inning with a strikeout.

GAMES NOTES

Boyet's walk-off home run was her first in a Delaware uniform and the second of her career. It's Delaware's first win on a walk-off home run since Hanna Garber hit one on April 9, 2022 against Drexel.
Boyet has both walk-off RBIs this season for Delaware, as she hit a sacrifice fly to win the game against Akron on Feb. 17.
Boyet has an RBI in five straight games, including two RBIs in both games today.
Costaro hit home runs in back-to-back games and now has five this season. She is the first Delaware player to hit a home run in two straight games since Hanna Garber on April 6 and 9, 2022.
Costaro's five home runs are the most by a Delaware freshman since Brooke Glanden hit seven and Brittney Mendoza hit six in 2019.
Thomas earned her first career win, hits, and RBIs during the game against Lehigh.
Winburn earned the win in relief against Iowa State, her fifth straight decision to result in a win. She now has 54 career wins, four shy of tying Kristi O'Connell for second place in Delaware history.
Shaffer has three games this season with multiple RBIs.
Julz Garber has a hit in six consecutive games, and has four multiple-hit games during the stretch and six for the season.
Luzon is 3-for-5 this season as a pinch hitter.
Delaware has scored at least seven runs in five straight games for the first time since March 30-April 5, 2017.
Delaware offensively had zero strikeouts in both games.