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Pitt-Bradford Box Score

Crown Box Score

FORT MYERS, Fla. (Mar. 16, 2019) – Offering its finest showing of the season, the North Central College softball team turned in a pair of dominant performances at the Gene Cusic Classic Saturday, dispatching of the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford Panthers 7-1 and the Crown College Storm, 8-0, for their sixth win in three days. 

In their matchup with Pittsburgh-Bradford (5-7), the Cardinals took the lead in the bottom of the first, which they never relinquished. Taylor Clugston, Rachele Belletini and Molly Cann all knocked singles in the first inning, with Clugston and Breanna Adams crossing the plate to give the Cardinals a 2-0 lead. North Central's bats came alive in the third inning again, led by consecutive singles from Jamie Smith, Cann and Gadomski, which scored a run. With two outs, Nykia Wetterman belted a single to add two more runs.

With the decision already a foregone conclusion, the Cardinals tallied a pair of insurance runs in the sixth inning to put the game further out of reach of the Panthers thanks to Cann's RBI single to push the lead to 7-0.

In the circle for the Cardinals, Samantha Godomski struck out four batters, walked one and allowed four hits. The Cardinals totaled 12 hits in the contest, led by Cann who went three-for-three and recorded three RBI. 

North Central's game against Crown College (3-5) started in similar fashion, with Emily Miller providing a leadoff-single, eventually scoring on a passed ball. But the game remained a one-run contest for the following four innings, as both teams struggled to get the bats going.

That all changed in the fifth inning, when seven consecutive batters scored for the Cardinals. Wetterman and Miller both drew walks, before Clugston added a single. With the bases loaded, Belletini stepped up to the plate and blasted a grand slam to put the North Central firmly on top. Next up, Adams hit one of her own, for back-to-back homeruns. The Cardinals onslaught continued with Adams scoring on Cann's triple, who crossed the plate off a sacrifice fly to end the game in the fifth inning. 

Earning the win was Jordan Raszeja, who struck out three, while walking one and allowing just two hits for the team's third shutout. While Miller scored two runs for the Cardinals, she also made a pair of diving catches in the outfield to help maintain the shutout. 

North Central (6-0) plays its final games at the Gene Cusic Classic tomorrow, facing the College at Brockport Golden Eagles (3-1) at 9 a.m. Eastern Time, followed by the Knox College Prairie Fire (2-6) at 11 a.m. Live stats and video of the first game available HERE.