Box Score 1 | Box Score 2

LAKELAND, Fla. – The Nova Southeastern University softball team took their three-game set over Florida Southern Saturday via an 11-2 doubleheader-opening win at Barnett Field.
 
The Sharks (16-21, 4-14 SSC) were able to end Saturday's first game in five, largely due in part to a six-run fourth inning. Starting pitcher Rebecca Thornton (So., Lodi, Calif.) picked up her second win in as many games, and her offense supplied her with five extra-base hits among their total of nine.
 
In the finale, the Mocs (18-27, 4-14 SSC) avoided an NSU sweep, 6-4. They held off a late Shark rally, including having the tying run at the plate in the last inning.

The Shark defense was sparkling during the series, not committing an error in 90 total chances. The middle infield combination of second baseman Dakota Villella (So., Hollywood, Fla.) and shortstop Haley Gonzales (Fr., Miami) combined for 42 flawless handles, totaling 20 putouts and 22 assists between the two of them.
 
GAME ONE
The Sharks got on the board early and often, and in fact, would end up tallying at least a run in each inning. The first frame saw Katrina Ammons (Sr., Jacksonville, Fla.) double in Maegan Lee (Sr., Miami), who had reached to lead off the game on the first of five FSC errors.
 
In the second, two Sharks came in, both on a double to left-center off the bat of Brenisha Bannister (Fr., Plantation, Fla.). Scoring were Jessie Brown (Fr., Davie, Fla.), who had also doubled, as well as Gonzales, on after another error. The next turn at-bat for the Sharks produced one run, as Shelby Cogan (Sr., Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) tripled with one out and came across on a sacrifice fly by Brown.
 
The six-run fourth saw the first two runs scored on bases-loaded walks, giving an RBI each to Thornton and Cogan, before Te Reo Powhiri Matautia (Jr., Auckland, New Zealand) cleared the bases with a three-run double down the leftfield line. She would be the sixth and final run in the inning, advancing to third and then scoring on two separate Moc errors.
 
Though FSC was able to get to Thornton for two runs in their half of the fourth, she got one of them back in the fifth on a two-out RBI single. She then induced a game-ending double play groundout to wrap up the fifth and the game, Lee to Villella to Ammons.
 
Both Matautia and Bannister had two-hit games in support of Thornton, now 13-9 this season. She gave up six hits for the second straight day, for a total of just 12 allowed in 12 innings of work.
 
GAME TWO
The Mocs put up consecutive three-spots in each of the opening two innings for their first lead of the series. In the first, all three came on a home run over the leftfield fence by Jordan Alexander.
 
NSU cut the lead in half in the fourth, with all three runs unearned. The first came when Brown's hard grounder was mishandled at third base, allowing Matautia to score from second. Then, with two outs, back-to-back run-scoring hits were supplied by Gonzales (a double) and Bannister (an infield single) to make it 6-3.
 
Lee, who came on in relief in the second inning, retired 11 straight Mocs, including 1-2-3 frames in the third, fourth and fifth. That kept the deficit at three runs, and the Sharks whittled that down more in the seventh.
 
In their final turn, Villella tripled with one out. Next, Ammons lined a single right up the box and off the glove of FSC pitcher Brandi Jones, who then threw from her knees wildly into rightfield, allowing Villella to score. But Jones buckled down to get the final two Shark batters out and earn the win.
 
Matautia added two more hits in the nightcap, as did Villella and Gonzales. Lee ended up working five solid innings in relief, allowing just two hits.
 
The Sharks conclude their nine-game road trip next weekend as they take on the Spartans of Tampa. The opener is Friday, April 17, at 6 p.m., with a doubleheader the next day starting at 1.