Miami, FL - On Thursday, the Saints traveled to Miami Dade College to take on the Sharks in a Citrus Conference matchup. The Saints entered Thursday sitting in fourth in the conference, having already earned their place in the FCSAA Tournament in Clearwater while Miami Dade is in seventh place and still fighting for a position in the tournament. This was the first matchup of the season between the two teams as it was a rescheduled game from earlier in the year.  The Saints won both games 5-0 and will march into Saturday's repeat doubleheader with the Sharks. The Saints record moves to 29-13 in the Citrus Conference and 38-19 overall.  The second victory earned coach Savanah Webster her 100th career win as the head softball coach at Santa Fe.  This is the 30^th year of Saints softball (fastpitch) and Webster is 100-60 during her tenure.

How It Happened – Game 1

Mallory Forrester had another strong outing in Game 1 for the Saints, she pitched a complete game shutout and recorded nine strikeouts.  The Saints broke the ice with a run in the top of the fourth and then exploded with four in the top of the sixth.

Madison Conway led the way for the Saints bats as she went 3/4 at the plate and was the lone Saint to homer, sparking the Santa Fe offense in the top of the fourth.  The Saints showed excellent baserunning recording three stolen bases, including two by Aliana Mercado.

The Saints finished Game 1 with a 5-0 win while Conway and Mercado each recorded two RBIs and Forrester pitched her 14th win. 

How It Happened – Game 2

Santa Fe pitcher Ryleigh Bauer mimicked her Game 1 counterpart Forrester and pitched a complete game shutout as well. The Saints hit relatively well, going 7/27 at the plate and earning eight walks as a team.

The Saints got on the board in the top of the fourth by way of a Mercado single.  While Mercado and Conway led the way again with singles, they were also joined by Jayla Clark, Juliann Smith, and Alexis Daphney who all drove in a run.  Daphney also was patient enough to earn three walks.  Once they got going in the fourth they then scored two more in the fifth and an insurance run in the sixth.  The defense did the rest, holding Miami to runs for the final score of 5-0.

The Saints finished the day 2-0 and the win gives coach Savanah Webster her 100^th win as the Saints leader. The Saints are now 38-19 overall and 29-13 in the Citrus Conference heading into the season finale doubleheader versus Miami Dade College on Saturday. The Saints have officially qualified for the FCSAA Tournament in Clearwater, Florida.  This will be their first appearance in three years, and they will await the seeding call to know their game time. 

Up Next at Santa Fe

On Saturday, April 27^th, the Saints will play Miami Dade at 12PM and 2PM in their last home doubleheader of the year.