LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The Spalding University softball team took two games from Blackburn in dominant fashion, 20-1 and 11-3, in their SLIAC opener Saturday afternoon at Holy Cross. With the win the Golden Eagles improve to 7-9 overall and 2-0 in conference play.

In the opener, Spalding jumped on the Beavers early scoring 12 runs in the first and never let off the gas rolling to a 20-1 win.

The Golden Eagles had five players with two or RBIs (Gilliland, Hale, Klein, Mouser and Rucker). Samantha Klein led the group going 3-for-5 with five runs batted in, while Becca Mouser and Amanda Gilliland each tallied a pair of hits and four RBIs.

Amber Kilburn (3-4) earned the win, limiting Blackburn to one run, zero earned, on four hits, while striking out six batters and walking none.
Klein opened the first inning barrage with a single scoring Lindsey Hubbard and Kaylin Rucker. Mouser made it five on when she hit a three-run homer, SU's first of four in the inning, bringing Klein and Gilliland across the dish. Caroline Hale stretch it to 7-0 with a two run shot that brought in Brooke Lamon. Gilliland doubled scoring Hubbard to make it 8-0, and Klein followed with a three-run bomb to put SU into double-digits at 11-0. Mouser capped off the inning with a solo shot to make the score 12-0 heading into the second. The Golden Eagles would go on to add seven runs in the seventh inning and to make it 19-0. Blackburn would score a run in the top of the fourth, but Robyn Schoen got it back in the home half of the inning with a single scoring Lamon to make the final margin, 20-1.

Similar to the first game, SU used a big first inning to propel them to an 11-3 victory over the Beavers in game two sweeping the double header.

Brooke Lamon led the Golden Eagles at the plate going 2-for-3 with two RBIs. Becca Mouser also drove in a pair of runs on a 1-for-4 performance, and Caroline Hale went a perfect 3-for-3 while driving in one run.

Robyn Schoen (4-4) earned her fourth win of the season, allowing three runs on 11 hits, while striking out two batters and walking none.

Reminiscent of game one, Klein got the scoring started for SU in game two driving in Lindsey Hubbard from third with a ground out to third that allowed Rucker to advance to third. Rucker and Gilliland advanced home following an error at first base that allowed Mouser to reach as well. Shelby Kilgore drove in the final run of the inning ripping a double that scored Lamon. Blackburn scored a run in the second to cut the deficit to five runs, but the Golden Eagles answered with three runs in the bottom of the third to push the margin to eight runs. The Beavers scored a run in the fifth inning to send the game to a sixth inning, and added another in the sixth to the SU lead to six, 9-3. Nevertheless, the Golden Eagles tallied two to inforce the eight after five run rule. Gilliland brought the first run across with a double scoring Rucker, and Mouser ended the game with an RBI ground out bring in Gilliland to end the game, 11-3.

The Golden Eagles will be back in action Thursday, April 7 when they head to Lexington, Ky. to take on Transylvania University.