The Lady Royals exploded for 12 runs in the second inning of game two as they rolled to a 17-6 mercy-shortened win over Shenandoah.  The Hornets did win the first game of the doubleheader in Winchester, as EMU settled for a split in their ODAC opener.

Shenandoah 4, EMU 2
The first game looked like a pitcher's duel until the women got rolling in the fourth.  Brooke Hensley (Elkton, VA/Spotswood) led off with a triple and Brooke Sigrist (Crimora, VA/Fort Defiance) reached on an error.  Aislinn Lucas (Grottoes, VA/Fort Defiance) brought in both women with a one-out single to give the Lady Royals a 2-0 lead.

SU took the lead in the bottom of the frame, however, with a two-out bases loaded double which scored three runs.  The Hornets added an insurance run in the sixth, but it didn't matter as EMU only had one more base runner over the final three innings.

Hensley and Lucas each had one of the women's three hits of SU ace Stephanie Cameron.  Cheyenne Cash (Elkton, VA/East Rockingham) had a single and Molly Smith (Elkton, VA/Spotswood) walked once.

Kaitlyn Morris (Elkton, VA/Page County) struck out six in 6.0 innings of work, but took the tough loss.

EMU 17, Shenandoah 6 – 5 innings
After giving up an unearned run in the bottom of the first, the Lady Royals took full advantage of two SU errors in the second.  The women batted 15 players in the frame and scored 12, with 10 of them being unearned.  Hensley had two singles and three RBIs in the inning, and Heather Bagwell (Harrisonburg, VA/Broadway) also had a two-run single.

Lucas had a two-run single in the third to give Eastern Mennonite a 14-1 lead.  The Hornets scored four in the fourth to make it 14-5.

To highlight the final inning, senior Courtney Allman (Mt. Solon, VA/Fort Defiance) got a long-awaited hit, smashing a two-run homer to left field.  Allman's fifth homerun of the year gave her 28 in her career and sole possession of EMU's Career Homerun record.  Her longball ended an eight-game homerless streak after she had tied former teammate Lisa Lee for the career mark on March 5.

The women had 12 hits and five walks in the nightcap, highlighted by Allman going 3-3 with her homerun and a walk.  She also scored three times and had three RBIs.

Hensley finished 2-4 with three RBIs and a run.  Lucas and Casey Racer (Madison, VA/Madison County) each had two runs and two RBIs.

Smith improved to 3-0 from the circle as she allowed two runs in 4.2 innings.  Lauren Campbell (Stuarts Draft, VA/Stuarts Draft) also pitched 0.1 of an inning.

The split ends a six-game winning streak for the Lady Royals, and puts them at 10-6 overall.  Now 1-1 in the ODAC, the women stay in conference play for their next six games, all at home.  That home stand starts this weekend with Guilford on Saturday and Lynchburg on Sunday.