Garden City, N.Y. – After LIU Post's Ashley Martin silenced the bats of the Adelphi University softball team in game one, the Panthers exploded for 11 runs in four innings to record an 11-2 run-ruled victory in game two and earn a split of a regional doubleheader on Wednesday at Janet L. Ficke Field.
 
Brenna Martini drove in the first five runs for Adelphi (11-9) in game two to lead the team in RBIs on the day, as she went 3-3 at the plate and also scored three runs in the win. Both Megan Lewis and Danielle Cutuli plated a pair of runs in the second game, while Krista King and Lauren Sandelier combined to go 3-5 at the top of the lineup and scored five runs. Driving in the final run for the Brown and Gold in the nightcap was Nicoletta Cuccio, who came off the bench in the fourth for a pinch-hit RBI single. 

Game 1
The Pioneers jumped on Lindsay Mapes in the opening inning of game one, as a double off the bat of Julia Seader scored Samantha Marrone to give the Pioneers an early 1-0 lead. That lead grew to 3-0 in the second inning, as Seader again delivered a two-run single up the middle with the bases loaded in what was a three-hit inning for the Pioneers. The early edge would be more than enough for Martin, as the Pioneers' (7-5) starter kept the Panthers at bay for the entirety of the opening game and hurled 5.1 perfect innings en route to a complete game shutout.

Pinch hitting with one out in the sixth, Sandelier broke up the perfect game as she dumped a single into right field and the Panthers brought the tying run to the plate in the form of Cuccio after King reached on a fielder's choice with two down in the frame. However, Martin responded by getting Cuccio to strike out swinging to keep the shutout intact.

Seader struck again against Mapes in the seventh as she smacked her second home run of the season over the right field fence with two outs to make the score 4-0 before  Mapes retired Paige Swantek on a fly out to center to bring the Brown and Gold back to the plate.

After Martini singled to lead off the inning, Nicole Camera hit a hard shot to first base that was knocked down and turned into a double play, which loomed large in Adelphi's attempted comeback as Lewis singled to center field in the next at bat. However, Martin struck out pinch hitter Taylor Ludewig to end the game, preserve her shutout and pick up her third win of the season.

Game 2
In a mirror of the opener, the Panthers fell behind 1-0 in game two as Leah Mele led off with a double, Marrone reached on an error and Seader singled to third to load the bases with no one out. From there, Isabella Corrao fouled out to Christina Palmenteri in left field to score Mele, but Kristin Fealy limited the damage to just one run by getting the next two outs. However, the bottom of the first couldn't have been more different as King led off with a single and Sandelier reached on a fielding error to bring Martini to the plate, and the sophomore cracked her second three-run shot in a three-game span to put Adelphi on top, 3-1. 

A leadoff walk came back to haunt Fealy in the top of the second, as Amanda Peet scored on Mackenzie Buckley's single up the middle to make it a one-run game at 3-2. After surrendering another walk to Mele, Fealy settled down from there and recorded a groundout and a strikeout to keep the tying and go-ahead runs from scoring.

Adelphi plated four runs on five hits in the bottom of the inning to open up a 7-2 lead, as four straight singles off the bats of Palmenteri, King, Sandelier and Martini led to the first two runs of the inning -- with Martini driving in a pair. From there, Camera moved Martini into scoring position, Lewis drove home Sandelier with a single up the middle and moved Martini to third, and Martini finally scored on a passed ball to make it a five-run game. After Fealy kept the Pioneers off the board by stranding a runner at second in the third and retired the side after surrendering a leadoff single in the fourth, the Panthers put the game away in the bottom of the frame.

The Brown and Gold loaded the bases courtesy of two walks to Sandelier and Camera sanwiched between a single by Martini, before a deep fly ball off the bat of Lewis scored Sandelier. After Stephanie Staiano walked to load the bases again, Cutuli delivered with a two-run single up the middle and advanced to second on the throw, which allowed her to score Adelphi's 11th run on Cuccio's ensuing pinch hit single. Handed a nine-run lead, Fealy retired the side in order for the first time in the game on three groundouts to make it official and end the contest in favor of the Panthers. 

The Brown and Gold return to Northeast-10 Conference play on Saturday, as they host the Greyhounds of Assumption College in a 12 pm doubleheader. 

NOTES
- With her five RBIs in game two, Martini leads the NE-10 in home runs (5) and RBIs (23) and ranks fifth in the NE-10 in average at .426.
- Fealy has won her last five decisions in the circle.

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About Adelphi University Athletics
Adelphi University joined the Northeast-10 Conference in the fall of 2009 and in the past six seasons has collected 16 regular season conference titles, 21 tournament championships, 27 individual crowns and captured the Northeast-10 President's Cup twice (2013 and 2014), while winning five NCAA Division II National Championships.

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