LATROBE, Pa. (Apr. 2)- The Saint Vincent softball team earned a doubleheader split with W&J at home on Thursday evening.
 
The Bearcats won the opener 5-4, before falling 4-2 in game two.
 
Game 1- Saint Vincent 5, W&J 4
The Saint Vincent College softball team picked up a Presidents' Athletic Conference victory on Thursday afternoon at home, defeating Washington & Jefferson College by a 5-4 score.
 
The Bearcats moved to 9-12 overall and 3-6 in PAC play with the win, while the Presidents fell to 7-12 overall and 3-6 in conference action.
 
Saint Vincent struck first in the bottom of the opening inning. Eva Farone was hit by a pitch to begin the frame, and after Emily Dudenhoeffer reached on a fielder's choice, a throwing error by the W&J shortstop allowed Farone to come around and score the game's first run for a 1-0 Bearcat lead.
 
Washington & Jefferson answered in the top of the second, as Maddie Luxenberger singled up the middle to drive in Kaylee Witner and even the game at 1-1. Saint Vincent then delivered the game's biggest swing in the bottom of the third.
 
Mackenzie Favero, Emily Dudenhoeffer and Alyssa Henderson all came around to score on Samantha Farrell's three-run double to center field, giving the Bearcats a 4-1 advantage.
 
The Presidents trimmed the deficit to 4-2 in the fourth inning on an RBI single from Julia DiPietro-Harvey, but Saint Vincent got that run right back in the bottom of the fifth. Emily Dudenhoeffer scored on a fielder's choice off the bat of Taylor Williams, stretching the SVC lead to 5-2.
 
W&J kept pushing late, scoring once in the sixth when Mirranda Rinehart came home on a Macayle Thornhill single-and-advance play, then adding another run in the seventh on Sydney VanNess' RBI single to right.
 
The Presidents brought the tying run into scoring position, but the Bearcats held on to seal the one-run conference victory.
 
Farrell led the Saint Vincent offense by going 2-for-3 with a double and three RBI. Dudenhoeffer scored twice and added a hit and a walk, while Farone went 1-for-2 with a double, a walk and a run scored.
 
 Favero, Henderson, Josey Michalski and Anita Szymoniak each added one hit, and Williams recorded an RBI. As a team, the Bearcats finished with eight hits and four walks.
 
In the circle, A.J. Arnal tossed a complete game to earn the win and improve to 4-5 on the season. She allowed four runs, three earned, on nine hits over all seven innings. Arnal did not issue a walk and helped Saint Vincent work around late pressure from the Presidents.
 
Washington & Jefferson totaled nine hits in the loss, with Hannah Allen and Macayle Thornhill each recording two. Kaylee Witner took the loss after allowing four runs, three earned, over 2.2 innings, while Thornhill, Olivia Dyer and Braelyn Altman also saw time in relief.
 
Game 2- W&J 4, Saint Vincent 2
The Saint Vincent College softball team dropped the second game of Thursday's Presidents' Athletic Conference doubleheader to Washington & Jefferson College, 4-2.
 
With the result, the Bearcats moved to 9-13 overall and 3-7 in PAC play, while the Presidents improved to 8-12 overall and 4-6 in conference action.
 
 
Washington & Jefferson broke through first in the top of the third inning. Savannah Bodnar led off with a triple, and Julia DiPietro-Harvey followed with an RBI single to right field to give the Presidents a 1-0 lead.
 
The Presidents added to their advantage in the fifth. Maddie Luxenberger scored on an error at third base, Sydney VanNess came home on a Hannah Allen RBI single up the middle, and Allen later scored on Mirranda Rinehart's RBI double to left field, stretching the W&J lead to 4-0.
 
Saint Vincent answered in the bottom of the sixth inning. Emily Dudenhoeffer scored on Alyssa Henderson's RBI double to left field, and Remmie Seitz later crossed the plate on Samantha Farrell's RBI double to right, trimming the deficit to 4-2. The Bearcats, however, were unable to draw any closer over the final inning.
 
Henderson paced the Bearcat offense by going 3-for-3 with a double and an RBI, while Eva Farone and Abby Bauer each added two hits. Dudenhoeffer, Josey Michalski and Farrell also recorded hits, with Farrell driving in Saint Vincent's second run. As a team, the Bearcats finished with 10 hits.
 
Natalie Bizup took the loss in the circle, throwing six innings, allowing four runs, two earned, on 10 hits while walking one. My McHugh pitched a scoreless inning in relief.
 
Washington & Jefferson totaled 12 hits in the win, led by Hannah Allen's 3-for-3 day with an RBI. Sydney VanNess and Savannah Bodnar each had two hits, while DiPietro-Harvey and Rinehart both drove in a run. Braelyn Altman earned the win after allowing two runs on nine hits over 5.1 innings, and Haylee Young picked up the save with 1.2 scoreless innings of relief.
 
Saint Vincent returns to action on Wednesday, April 8 with a road PAC doubleheader at Thiel. First pitch for game one is scheduled for 3:30 p.m.