Box Score 1 | Box Score 2
KISSIMMEE, Fla. – The Shippensburg University softball team split a pair of games on a sunny and pleasant Monday from the Fortune Road complex in Florida, pulling out a 4-3 victory in 10 innings over Northwood (Mich.) after dropping an 8-0 decision in five innings to Caldwell.

Shippensburg (5-7) got 10 solid innings of work in the second game from a pair of freshmen – Lizzy Parkins and Makenzie Lynn. Parkins allowed two runs in six innings while striking out five. She walked just one. Lynn pitched four innings – three after the international tiebreaker took effect – and allowed just an unearned run with two outs in the ninth. She gave up two hits and struck out five, walking just one.

Freshman Tyler Thompson went 4-for-6 on the day with two walks. Senior catcher Meg Lehman had a walk and two hits against Northwood – including the game-winning RBI-single in the 10th inning.

SU will have a day off Tuesday before concluding its stay in Florida with two games on Wednesday – a 9 a.m. contest against Minnesota-Duluth and an 11 a.m. clash with Adelphi.

Caldwell 8, Shippensburg 0 (5)

The Cougars of Caldwell College improved to 4-0 on the season by scoring two runs in the first, three in the third and three more in the fourth en route to a victory. Senior Chelsea Kendall threw the opening 2.1 innings before Lynn replaced her and pitched the through the end of the fourth.

SU had four singles in the game – two by Thompson, one by freshman Maddie Justice and another by Kendall.

Shippensburg 4, Northwood (Mich.) 3 (10)

Shippensburg avenged an 8-0 loss to Northwood (Mich.) from last season by using determination and late-inning perseverance to salvage a split of Monday's games.

The teams were scoreless through five innings before the Timberwolves plated a pair of runs in the sixth on an RBI-groundout and a wild pitch. Lizzy Parkins navigated through some trouble in the opening three innings – dodging a leadoff triple in the first and a pair of singles in the second before retiring 10 consecutive batters.

Down two runs, the Raiders answered immediately in the bottom of the sixth to tie the score. Thompson drew a leadoff walk and then moved to third base after a single by Lehman. Freshman Jess Harding pinch ran for Lehman and stole second base – putting two runners in scoring position.

The next batter was Justice, who grounded out to third base for the first out. On the play, Thompson raced home on the throw across the diamond and slid around the tag of the catcher for the first Raider run. One pitch later, freshman shortstop Taylor Weisman laced a single into center field to plate Harding and tie the score.

Neither team scored a run in the eighth inning despite the international tiebreaker having taken effect. In the top half of the eighth, the leadoff batter popped her bunt attempt in the air and had it caught by Justice. Lynn then struck out the next batter and gave up a nubber off the end of the bat in which the Timberwolf runner came around third base and then raced toward home but was thrown out at the plate after a solid throw from Weisman and a nice tag by Lehman.

In the bottom of the eighth, Thompson reached on a bunt single to put runners on first and third base. Lehman then hit a shot off the glove of the third baseman that the shortstop fielded and then threw back around to third base to catch the lead runner. A foul out and a pop up ended the frame.

Lynn almost got out of the ninth inning unscathed as well, surrounding a fielding error with a short fly out and an infield fly to get two outs, but Northwood got a blooper into right field on a 2-2 pitch to take a 3-2 lead.  Sophomore Rachel Shumway delivered a one-out single into left-center field in the bottom of the ninth to plate Weisman and tie the game.

In the 10th inning, Lynn struck out the leadoff batter before issuing her only walk. A fielder's choice and a strikeout ended the threat.

SU needed just two pitches to win the game in the bottom of the 10th – with Thompson dropping in another bunt single on the first pitch and Lehman then driving her second hit of the game into center field for a walk-off win.