Box Score 1 | Box Score 2

FARMVILLE, Va. – The Longwood University softball team earned a pair of wins on day two of its annual Adidas Spring Classic on Sunday, February 24. The Lancers defeated Stony Brook University (4-6), 3-0, in its first game of the day before downing Bucknell University (1-7), 9-1, in six innings. Longwood (7-1) was led by sophomore Chelsea Sciacca/Whittier, California, who went 3-for-3 at the plate against Bucknell with three RBI. Sophomore Katie Shinrock/Fountain Valley, Calif. (3-6) hit .500 on the day with one home run and three RBI, as well. Senior Brooke Short/Hurt (11 ip, 5 so, 3 hits, 1 run) picked up both wins in the circle to improve to 5-0 on the season. LU will travel to the Disney Citrus Classic to play five games from March 1-3 beginning with Boston College on March 1 at 1:15 p.m.

“I'm proud to see us pick up the two victories today to win the Adidas Spring Classic,” said head coach Kathy Riley. “We got a great effort in the circle today and also hit the ball hard. We still need to work out some defensive kinks and we plan to have that be our main focus as we prepare for the Disney Citrus Classic.”

Longwood and Stony Brook battled through a closely contested game in which neither team was able to plate a run through the first three complete innings. The Lancers stranded three runners in its first three at-bats before Short (2-4, 1 RBI, 1 hr) broke the silence in the bottom of the fourth when she drilled the first pitch she saw over the fence in straight away center for a leadoff home run, putting LU up 1-0.

The bats were silent for both squads again in the fifth, but Longwood added a pair of insurance runs in the home half of the sixth. The Lancers loaded the bases with a single down the right field line from Shinrock and walks from Short and freshman Emily Murphy/Virginia Beach (2-5, 3 runs) before freshman Carly Adams/Colonial Heights (2-5, 1 run, 1 RBI) hit a two-out RBI single to right. In the next at-bat, freshman Jamie Barbour/Amelia (0-2, 1 RBI) was hit by a pitch to score Short and give LU a 3-0 advantage.

Stony Brook threatened to rally with two outs in the top of the seventh, as a single and a walk brought the tying run to the plate, but Short earned the strikeout to extinguish the opportunity and give Longwood the 3-0 victory. Short went the distance in the circle for the hosts, allowing just one hit and one walk while striking out three.

In the game against Bucknell, the Lancers offense went to work early, scoring a pair of runs in the top of the first as the visitors in the neutral site contest. Sophomore Kori Nishitomi/Kaneohe, Hawaii (2-7, 1 run) hit a leadoff single to put herself in scoring position before Shinrock nailed her first long ball of the season to right center to plate them both. Shinrock followed her offensive performance with a talented catch in the field in the bottom of the inning, as she tracked down a deep fly ball in center to make a stumbling grab near the fence, keeping the Lancers' lead intact.

Longwood extended its buffer in the top of the fourth when Murphy got on base with a leadoff single and Sciacca doubled to left to knock her in and make it a 3-0 game. Bucknell scored its first run in the game with the help of two errors by the Lancers, but freshman Megan Baltzell/Stafford (2-4, 1 RBI, 1 hr) led off in the top of the fifth with a solo home run to center to regain a three-run buffer for LU. Longwood scored three more runs in the inning thanks to a catcher's interference call and a pair of walks. Sciacca finished the Lancers attack with a two-run single to center in the top of the sixth and the Lancers held the Bison scoreless in the bottom of the inning to take the 9-1 win in six.

Short hurled four complete innings with two hits, one walk and one run, while senior Ashley Cornell/Portsmouth pitched the last two innings, allowing just one hit.