GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - Calvin swept a Thursday night doubleheader against the visiting Manchester Spartans.

Thursday's doubleheader was played on the campus of Cornerstone University as the Knights utilized the school's articifial turf field after rain made Calvin's field unplayable. Calvin took both games by way of the run rule, winning game one 13-1 in five innings and game two 14-0 in five innings.

GAME ONE
Calvin 13, Manchester 1

Calvin scored four runs in the first and five in the second to roll to the 13-1 victory. Senior Maddie DeGroot (Hudsonville, Mich./Unity Christian HS) and junior Kayla Groen (Frankfort, Il./Lincoln Way East HS). In the second, junior Hannah Horvanth (Caledonia, Mich./Caledonia HS) and Groen both belted RBI triples.

Junior Abi Colon (Caledonia, Mich./Unity Christian HS) highlighted the fourth inning with a solo home run - her seventh of the spring and the ninth of her career - moving her into a tie for fifth place on the Calvin career list.

Sophomore Ellie Borst (Hudsonville, Mich./Unity Christian HS) tossed five strong innings to pick up her 10th victory of the season. Borst struck out seven and walked three while allowing only one hit.

Freshman Hannah Biddlecome (Portage, Mich./Portage Northern HS) was 3-for-4 at the plate. Groen's pair of extra-base hits were good for five RBI in the win.

GAME TWO
Calvin 14, Manchester 0

Calvin (22-6 overall) used an eight-run first inning to take command early while senior Anna Gernant (West Des Moines, Ia./Valley HS) tossed a four-hit shutout in the circle.

Gernant struck out seven and walked three in gaining her sixth victory of the season.

Calvin's first inning surge was fueled by five hits, three Manchester errors and a hit batter.

In the second, junior Grace Quiggle (Saranac, Mich./Lowell HS) crushed a two-run homer - her fifth of the spring. In the third, sophomore Grace Stock (Vicksburg, Mich./Vicksburg HS) blasted a towering three-run shot to left. The home run was her third of the season.

Biddlecome, Stock and Quiggle all had two hits apiece. Stock and Quiggle both had four RBI.

COACHES QUOTE: I am really proud of our team for how we handled some adversity today with the weather conditions and changing fields from dirt to turf," said Calvin softball coach Becky Hilgert. "We had a good game plan going in and offensively I was really happy how we stayed patient and attacked the pitches we wanted to hit and as a result we had a few big scoring innings. Defensively we played error free in both games which is huge at this point in the season to give us some added confidence going into the remaining part of our conference season. Ellie and Anna both kept Manchester's hitters off balance and really focused on on their efficiency with their inning by inning pitch count. Everyone on our team contributed to those two wins so there was a lot of excitement at the end of the night. A special thank you to everyone who made the effort to help us get today's games in and a special thank you to Cornerstone for the use of its field."

NEXT UP: Calvin travels to conference foe Trine Saturday for a crucial league doubleheader scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. The two teams are currently tied for first place in the MIAA standings with 8-2 league records.