JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - North Florida softball (18-5) pulled out the midweek doubleheader sweep against Holy Cross with dominant pitching and clutch base-running on Tuesday afternoon at UNF Softball Complex.
The Ospreys add two more wins to their winning streak to put their current total at 10 straight wins. UNF also recorded 55.0 straight scoreless innings allowed through a span of those 10 games before allowing an unearned run in the third inning, which now stands as the longest steak of no runs allowed for the Ospreys in program history.
Halle Arends followed up her 2-0 weekend with no runs allowed with yet another dominant performance this afternoon pitching a total of 6.1 innings with no runs allowed, one hit allowed, and 12 strikeouts combined in relief for both games.
GAME 1 | UNF 1, HC 0
Morgan Clausen and Arends help extend the scoreless streak on defense to eight games with 14 total strikeouts, while
Kayla Harper records the only run of the game on her inside-the-park home run.
Pitchers of Record
Win:
Halle Arends (8-1)
Loss: Kelly Nelson (1-5)
Line Scores
HC | 0 R, 4 H, 0 E, 6 LOB
UNF | 1 R, 3 H, 0 E, 5 LOB
Behind the Line Score
- Clausen started strong after fanning the side in the first inning.
- The Ospreys were able to get two on base at the bottom of the first, but nothing came of it.
- Harper hit a shot into left center, but it bounced off the fielder's glove to allow her to score an inside-the-park home run.
- Arends stepped up in relief of Clausen in the fourth with a strikeout to strand two base runners in the fourth.
- Arends notched the team's 11th strikeout of the day when she shut down the Crusaders' lineup in the sixth.
- Three more up and down on strikeouts gave Arends the win and the pitching staff in the first game a combined 14 strikeouts.
Statistical Leaders
HC
- Jessica Mott | 1-2
- Bailey Chavez | 1-2
- Kelly Nelson | 6.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 7 K, 87 pitches
UNF
Notes
- Extended scoreless streak to eight straight games.
- Harper turned turned on the jets for her second inside-the-park home run of the season.
- Arends now has eight wins to her name, which leads all pitchers the ASUN conference.
GAME 2 | UNF 5, HC 1
A scoring barrage late in the game for UNF, including a two-run bomb by
Paige Pfent, pushed the Ospreys past the Crusaders' to take both games of the doubleheader.
Pitchers of Record
Win:
Erin Kyle (5-2)
Loss: Kelly Nelson (1-6)
Save:
Halle Arends (1)
Line Scores
HC | 1 R, 5 H, 3 E, 9 LOB
UNF | 5 R, 6 H, 2 E, 4 LOB
Behind the Line Score
- Both teams went scoreless through the first two innings with only two hits combined during that span.
- Holy Cross was able to put up a score first in the third inning off a wild pitch, breaking the streak of holding opponents scoreless at eight games.
- The Ospreys responded well in the fourth after
Shannon Glover's double set up the Ospreys to score on a fielding error and
Abi Annett to hit a sac-fly to take a 2-1 lead.
- Pfent opened it up in the bottom of the fifth inning after blasting a two-run no-doubter over the wall in left center to extend the lead to three.
- Glover made her bat known again later in the fifth after her single to right field got past the glove of the outfielder and she was able to make it all the way home on the error.
- Arends came in relief for a second time on the day and pulled out the save in the 5-1 victory.
Statistical Leaders
HC
- Bailey Chavez | 2-2
- Jessica Mott | 2-4
- Claire McCann | 1-2
- Kelly Nelson | 4.2 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 3 K, 83 pitches
UNF
- Paige Pfent | 2-3, 2 RBI, R
- Shannon Glover | 2-3, 2 R
- Erin Kyle | 4.2 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 3 K, 57 pitches
- Halle Arends | 2.1 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 4 K, 48 pitches
Notes
- Completed a total of 55.0 straight scoreless innings before giving up a run in the third inning.
- Arends gets the first save of the season after recording a win earlier in the day in relief of Clausen.
- Pfent hit her second home run of the season and her first since playing UF on Feb. 22.
- Pfent recorded her fifth multi-hit game of the year, Glover notched her fourth as well.
UP NEXT
The Ospreys look for their 11th-straight win on Wednesday afternoon with another midweek matchup against Tennessee State at 11:30 a.m.
