Lyndonville, VT: The SUNY Cobleskill softball team kept their conference streak alive Friday afternoon, sweeping a North Atlantic Conference (NAC) doubleheader from VTSU-Lyndon to improve to 6-0 in league play. The Fighting Tigers took Game one 10-5 before cruising to a 10-0 shutout in Game two at the Skip Pound Complex.

Game One: Cobleskill 10, VTSU-Lyndon 5
The Tigers roared back in dramatic fashion, using an eight-run explosion in the top of the seventh to erase a late deficit and claim the opener.

First-year Gabriella Wendelken (Stuyvesant, NY/Ichabod Crane) was lights out on both sides of the ball. In the circle, she went the distance, allowing just three earned runs on nine hits while punching out seven. At the plate, she went a perfect 3-for-3, all doubles, driving in two and scoring twice.

Kailee DiGiacco (Spencerport, NY) delivered in the clutch with a 3-for-4 effort, including a two-run single that tied the game during the Tigers' seventh-inning rally. Aliyah Neeser (Forest Lake, MN) stayed locked in at the dish, going 2-for-3 with an RBI, while Mackenzie Wendelken (Stuyvesant, NY/Ichabod Crane) chipped in two hits, an RBI, and a run scored. Cobleskill tallied 13 hits in the win, with every starter reaching base at least once.

After falling behind 2-0 on a first-inning homer by the Hornets, the Tigers kept it close and trailed 5-2 heading into the seventh. That's when the bats came alive. Laci Prignon (Dryden, NY) kickstarted the rally by scoring on a dropped fly ball. DiGiacco then tied the game with a sharp single through the right side. Kylie Rattigan (Poughkeepsie, NY/Arlington) followed with a go-ahead RBI single, and from there, Cobleskill poured it on. M. Wendelken drew a bases-loaded walk, and Gabby Wendelken smashed her third double of the day to bring in two more. Neeser capped the inning with a line drive RBI single to center to make it 10-5.

Game Two: Cobleskill 10, VTSU-Lyndon 0 (5 Innings)
The nightcap was all Cobleskill from the start, as the Tigers backed a dominant outing from Madelynn Orosz (7-2) to secure the sweep.

Orosz was sharp in the circle, tossing five shutout innings, scattering five hits, and striking out four without issuing a walk. She let her defense work and kept the Hornets off balance all afternoon.

At the plate, Kailee DiGiacco continued to rake, driving in a game-high four runs, including a bases-clearing double in the second. Jenna Smyczynski (East Aurora, NY) added three RBIs of her own, highlighted by a two-run double in the third that broke the game wide open.

Gabriella Wendelken stayed hot with a 3-for-4 performance and scored twice, while Neeser, Brielle Dixon (Millville, NJ), Samantha Bargren (Wilmington, DE/Brandywine), and Prignon all notched hits in the win.

After a quiet first, Cobleskill opened the floodgates in the second. DiGiacco's three-run double got the Tigers rolling, and Smyczynski followed with a single to plate DiGiacco, making it 4-0. The third inning saw five more runs cross, with Bargren and Smyczynski doing the damage. Bargren added an RBI single, and Smyczynski cleared the bases with a double to right, putting the game well out of reach at 9-0. An error in the fourth brought home Bargren to make it a clean 10-0 run-rule win.

Up Next
The Tigers return to action on Saturday, April 26, for another NAC doubleheader at VTSU-Lyndon starting at 12:00 p.m. as they look to keep their conference record spotless.