Garden City N.Y. - Back-to-back perfect games from Claire Fon and Lindsey Hibbs guided the Adelphi University softball team (13-7) to a doubleheader sweep over the Saint Thomas Aquinas College (4-11) Tuesday afternoon on Janet L. Fickle Field, 11-0 and 5-0.
Game 1: Adelphi 11, STAC 0 F/5
Claire Fon started in the circle for the Panthers in Game 1 and faced the minimum 15 batters, tossing the first perfect game by an Adelphi pitcher since Julie Schaper on April 11th, 2007. Fon struck out six Spartans while only throwing 68 pitches, earning her sixth win of the season.
The Panthers wasted no time getting on the board in the bottom of the first. Ziara Shreter led off the frame with a triple and later scored on Courtney Wengyn's RBI single. The lead was doubled two batters later when Alexa Sacripante ripped a double to bring home Wengryn and gave Adelphi a 2-0 lead.
In the second, the Panthers put seven runs on the board, aided by four Spartan errors. Sofia Cicchetti, Jaden Farhat and Lauren O'Neill all drove in runs for Adelphi in the inning.
Two more Panther crossed the plate in the third to boot the hosts to a 11-0 lead.
Fon earned the win for Adelphi, while Abbie Landrum (2-6) was tagged with the loss for Saint Thomas Aquinas after she lasted just three innings, giving up all 11 runs on 12 hits.
Game 2: Adelphi 5, STAC 0
Lindsey Hibbs got the starting assignment in Game 2 and was perfect, retiring all 21 Spartan batters she faced. Hibbs came out firing from the start, striking out the first three in top of the first, and never let up. She totaled eight strikeouts over seven innings, with 91 pitches thrown.
Hibbs and Fon now share history, becoming the first pair of Adelphi teammates to both throw perfect games on the same day.
The Adelphi bats picked up right where they left off in Game 1, putting up four runs on six hits in the opening frame. Courtney Wengryn, Faith Camilleri, and Alexa Sacripante had consecutive RBI knocks to make it 3-0. The fourth run crossed the plate when Angela Lignelli was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded.
After the first, the two teams traded zeros until the bottom of the sixth when Adelphi added one as Ziara Shreter scored on a dropped third strike to make it 5-0.
Hibbs (7-3) was credited with the win, while Carissa Della Vecchia (2-5) got the loss despite throwing all six innings for the Spartans.
Adelphi will be back in action this Saturday, March 26th when they travel up to New Hampshire to take on Saint Anselm College in a doubleheader. First pitch of game one is set for 12 p.m.
