NOTRE DAME, Ind. - The Calvin softball team swept a conference doubleheader from Saint Mary's on Thursday afternoon, winning game one 5-0 and game two 10-0 in a contest shortened to five innings by the run rule. The Knights improve to 14-6 overall and 3-1 in the MIAA.

GAME ONE
Calvin 5, Saint Mary's 0

Calvin scored two runs in the first and three more in the second to provide all of the scoring it would need.

The Knights rode the right arm of junior Kirsten Krause (Fredonia, Wisc./Grafton HS) who tossed a seven-hit shutout victory. Krause struck out nine batters and walked none as she notched her first shutout of the season while lowering her season earned run average to 1.02.

Junior Sydney Duong (Kalamazoo, Mich./Kalamazoo Christian HS) led off the game with a solo home run to centerfield to give the Knights a 1-0 lead out of the gate. Senior Hannah Biddlecome (Portage, Mich./Portage Northern HS) then reached base on a bunt single, stole second, moved to third on a groundout and then scored on an infield single by junior Kali Yant (Vicksburg, Mich./Vicksburg HS).

In the second, Calvin loaded the bases and brought home a run on a dropped throw at the plate after Biddlecome put the ball in play. Yant followed with a two-out, two-run RBI single that gave the Knights a 5-0 lead.

In the bottom of the seventh, Saint Mary's loaded the bases but the Knights were able to close out the game on a home-to-first double-play.

Yant went 4-for-4 at the plate with three runs batted in. Duong went 2-for-4 with two runs scored and an RBI.

Freshman Taylor Sanborn (Midland, Mich./Midland HS) also collected two hits in the win.

GAME TWO
Calvin 10, Saint Mary's 0 (5 innings)

Calvin exploded for six runs in the bottom of the first and added four more in the third to build a commanding 10-0 lead.

Freshman pitcher Zoe Hazelhoff (Kalamazoo, Mich./Kalamazoo Christian HS) tossed a two-hit shutout, striking out three and walking none. The shutout was the first of Hazelhoff's career.

Calvin scored six runs in the first on the strength of two hits, three walks and three Saint Mary's errors.

In the third, Calvin placed two runners aboard with one out. Duong then drilled a single to center that got by the outfielder and went all the way to the wall. The fielding miscue allowed Duong to race all the way around the bases behind the two runners in front of her to give the Knights a 9-0 lead.

Biddlecome then doubled to left-center and scored on a single up the middle by senior Addi Warner (South Bend, Ind./Clay HS) to close out the scoring.

Duong and freshman Kennedi Pepin (Bourbannais, Il./Bradley Bourbannais HS) had two hits apiece with Duong collecting a double.

COACHES COMMENT: "Two big conference wins tonight," said Calvin head softball coach Becky Hilgert. "It was a long week with delays, rescheduled dates and questions on whether we would play or not play due to weather and field conditions. To our credit, we stayed mentally ready to go and were hungry to play this afternoon. We came out with energy and scored runs in the first inning of both games which was huge. We kept our foot on the gas pedal, getting runners on base almost every inning. I though Kirsten and Zoe were very efficient in limiting their offense and our defense played solid behind both pitchers. Overall, I was pleased with our entire team's effort, energy and competitiveness."

NEXT UP: Calvin will travel to Kalamazoo on Saturday for a conference doubleheader scheduled to start at 1 p.m.