CINCINNATI, Ohio (March 28, 2023) – The Denison University softball team traveled to Cincinnati, Ohio, to take on Mount St. Joseph University on Tuesday, and in the end, the Big Red battled to a split against the Lions. Denison dropped game one by a score of 6-1 before hitting three home runs and finishing with 14 total hits to win game number two by a final score of 10-6 at the Mount St. Joseph Softball Complex.

With the wind blowing out and storms approaching, the two teams combined for nine home runs on the day.
 
Game 1 (Denison 1, Mount St. Joseph 6):

• After a three-pitch top of the first inning by Mount St. Joseph's Casey Kemp (5-3), a leadoff walk led to an unearned run for the Lions in the bottom of the first inning.
• Denison's starting pitcher, Brooke Surbaugh (3-2), got the run back with a solo home run to right field in the top of the second inning.
• However, back-to-back solo home runs to start off the bottom of the second inning for the Lions were followed by a leadoff home run in the bottom of the third inning to help make it 6-1 MSJU after three innings.
• The Big Red defense had at least one error in each of the first three innings and finished with six errors in the game. All three of MSJU's runs that did not come via a home run were unearned.
• Sophia Parpala pitched the final four innings allowing three hits, one unearned run, no walks and three strikeouts.
• For MSJU, Kemp earned the complete game victory allowing four hits, one run, one walk and six strikeouts.
• Surbaugh added her second hit of the game with a one-out single to left field in the seventh inning. She finished 2-for-2 at the plate with a walk.
• Denison's only other two hits by someone other than Surbaugh where a leadoff single to center field in the third inning by Charlotte Doulette, who was erased on a double play, and a two-out double to center field in the sixth inning by Indy Workman, who was stranded on second base.

 
Game 2 (Denison 10, Mount St. Joseph 6):

• Denison fell behind 2-0 after a two-out, two-run home run to left field for the Lions in the bottom of the first.
• The Big Red then took their first lead of the day with a three-run top of the second inning that saw the first five batters in the inning reach base. It started with a leadoff double to left field by Annabelle Calderon, who scored on the ensuing single up the middle by Workman. Back-to-back walks by Surbaugh and Alessandra Groome loaded the bases, a single to right field by Brianna Gonzalez scored Workman, and then a sacrifice fly to left field by Clara Wolff brought home Surbaugh.
• However, after the Big Red left two runners in scoring position in the top of the second, MSJU fought back in the bottom of the second with a leadoff triple to right field followed by an RBI-single also to right field to tie the game at 3-3.
• Sydney Silverstein (4-2) was able to get three straight outs to leave two runners on in the bottom of the second, and then Jacqui Abogado led off the top of the third inning with a low, line drive home run.
• Once again, the Lions were able to answer the one-run lead by Denison and scored to tie it as another error by the Big Red defense came back to bite them when MSJU pushed across the tying run on a sacrifice fly to right field.
• The long balls continued to fly as after a one-out double to left field by Gonzalez in the fourth inning, Maggie Ballentine sent a line drive homer over the fence in left field to give Denison's its third lead of the game. Then in the fifth inning, Calderon singled to left field with one out and Surbaugh singled to left with two outs before Groome hit a three-run home run.
• After Groome's homer, the top of the fifth inning continued with a single to left field by Gonzalez before she scored on the ensuing double down the right field line by Wolff. In all, it was a four-run, five-hit fifth inning for the Big Red to take control of the game up 10-4.
• In the circle, Silverstein got a 6-4-3 double play to work around another error in the bottom of the fifth inning before striking out the side in the sixth inning. After back-to-back hits to lead off the bottom of the second inning, Silverstein held the Lions hitless for four straight innings until a two-out, two-run home run in the bottom of the seventh inning. She finished with just four hits allowed while tossing her third complete game of the season.
• Gonzalez finished 4-for-4 while Calderon, Groome and Wolff each finished with two hits.
• Gonzalez, Calderon and Surbaugh each scored twice for the Big Red as well.

 
Records:

• Denison (7-5 overall) picked up its first road win of the season while Mount St. Joseph (11-7) lost at home for the first time this year.
• Game two was also the end of a six-game winning streak for the Lions that included three straight wins over teams from the North Coast Athletic Conference entering the day against the Big Red.

 
Next Up: It is a busy week for Denison, which will host Marietta College starting at 4 p.m. on Thursday, March, 30, before kicking off North Coast Athletic Conference action on the road at the College of Wooster at 1 p.m. on Saturday, April 1. The Big Red will then return to Granville the next day for their first NCAC doubleheader at home of the season against Oberlin College starting at 1 p.m. on Sunday, April 2.