SWEET BRIAR, Va. – The Sweet Briar College softball team (3-5, 0-0 ODAC) split today's doubleheader against the Marymount University Saints (2-4, 0-0 AEC); taking game one 8-3, before falling in game two 15-5.

Game One
In the first inning, Sweet Briar immediately applied pressure when senior Kaylie Hudson (Lynchburg, Va.) singled and swiped both second and third, but the Vixens stranded her at third to keep the game scoreless after one. The second inning again saw Sweet Briar put a runner in scoring position as first-year Sophia Peterson (Ashland, Va.) walked and moved around on a sacrifice and a groundout before a pop-up ended the threat.

Sweet Briar finally broke through in the third. Junior Jordan Martin (Wilmington, N.C.) singled, Hudson ripped a double to left to push Martin to third, and junior Ambyre Taylor (Arrington, Va.) drew a walk to load the bases. Sophomore Abi Sawyers (Matthews, N.C.) then lifted a sacrifice fly to left that brought Martin home for a 1–0 lead, with the Vixens finishing the frame with one run on two hits.

The offense erupted in the fourth inning. Sophomores Leila Atienza (Jacksonville, N.C.) and Annie Purvis (Madison Heights, Va.) drew walks, with pinch-runner, first-year Lexie Aiman (Stafford, Va.) entering for Purvis, and sophomore Madeline Schmidt (Fluvanna, Va.) followed with a single to load the bases. Martin reached on a fielder's choice to keep the bases loaded, Hudson forced in a run with a bases-loaded walk, and Taylor lined a two-run single that plated Martin and Schmidt for a three-run inning and a 4–1 Sweet Briar advantage.

In the fifth, the Vixens used speed to add on. Junior Jordan Dorrier (Buckingham, Va.) worked a walk and moved up on an Atienza sacrifice before Purvis singled to left. Purvis promptly stole second while Dorrier stole home, and Schmidt delivered again with an RBI single to score Purvis, stretching the margin to 6–1.

Sweet Briar manufactured two more runs in the sixth. Taylor reached on an error and gave way to pinch-runner, sophomore Emily Cottingham (Chesterfield, Va.), who stole second before Sawyers reached on another miscue and then stole second herself. Dorrier singled in Cottingham and, after being caught stealing, allowed Sawyers to race home for an unearned run, giving the Vixens an 8–1 cushion heading to the seventh.

At the plate, Sweet Briar finished with eight hits, highlighted by multi-hit efforts from Hudson (2-for-3 with a double and RBI) and Schmidt (2-for-3 with an RBI and a run), while Martin scored twice and Dorrier reached base twice with a hit, walk, RBI and a key steal of home earlier in the game. Purvis added a hit, run and stolen base, and Sawyers drove in a pair of runs between her sacrifice fly in the third and scoring twice in the late innings.

In the circle, Taylor was the story, tossing a complete-game, seven-inning win while allowing three runs on eight hits with just one walk and six strikeouts over 97 pitches. She worked around early baserunners, did not allow an extra-base hit after the third inning, and limited Marymount to single runs in only the fourth and seventh frames to improve to 2–1 on the season.

Game Two
In the first inning, Sweet Briar's offense immediately answered an early Marymount run when Martin ripped a double, then came home on Peterson's RBI single to right. Taylor had already singled Martin to third, and Sawyers followed with a two-run double to the gap that scored Peterson and Taylor to give the Vixens a 3–1 lead after a five-hit frame that also included a single from Purvis and a walk by senior Ilka-Marie Kuleba (Endy, N.C.).

The second inning saw Sweet Briar continue to rely on the top of the lineup. Martin drew a walk, moved to second on a Hudson groundout, and with two outs, Peterson delivered again, driving a double to center to plate Martin and trim the deficit to 5–4. Senior Anna Smith (Rocky Mount, Va.), hitting for Sawyers, after entering the game to pitch, then grounded out to first to end the inning with another Vixen stranded.

Sweet Briar went quietly in the third as Purvis and Kuleba struck out and Cottingham flied out to center, ending the Vixens' first 1-2-3 inning at the plate. In the fourth, Schmidt flied out to right before Martin worked her second walk of the day, but Hudson's fielder's choice erased the lead runner and Taylor lined out to short to keep the score locked with the Vixens still searching for a late push.

In the fifth, Sweet Briar got one last jolt from Peterson. Leading off the inning, the sophomore outfielder crushed a solo home run to left, her third hit and third RBI of the day, cutting the margin to 15–5. First-Year Pepper Maranto (Jetersville, Va.) followed with a single, sophomore Sydney Gibson (Fluvanna County, Va.) lifted a fly to right, and Kuleba reached on a fielder's choice before junior Emma Staton (Buckingham, Va.) singled; however, a fielder's choice that forced Kuleba at third ended the game via the run rule despite the Vixens' three hits in the frame.

Offensively, Sweet Briar was powered by Peterson, who went 3-for-3 with a double, home run and four runs driven in, scoring twice from the middle of the order. Martin reached three times with a double and two walks, scoring two runs, while Taylor added a 1-for-3 day with a run and Sawyers finished 1-for-1 with a two-run double in the opening inning. Purvis and Maranto each collected a hit, and Staton came off the bench for a single in her lone plate appearance.

In the circle, Sawyers started and took the loss, allowing five runs (four earned) on six hits with one strikeout in 1.2 innings before giving way to Smith. Smith worked 2.1 innings of relief, surrendering eight runs (six earned) on nine hits while issuing one hit batter and one wild pitch, and Maranto closed the fifth with one inning of work, yielding two unearned runs without allowing a hit but walking one as Marymount capitalized on errors to finish the scoring.

Highlights

• Peterson's home run in game two was the first of her collegiate career.
• Martin currently ranks top-five in the ODAC in batting average (.522), on base percentage (.656), runs scored (10) and hits (12).
• Taylor is second in the conference with 11 RBIs while also leading in total batters struck out with 30.

What's Next
The Vixens will host Lancaster Bible on March 6th before seeing spring break action against Methodist, N.C. Wesleyan, New York University and Christopher Newport.

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