St. Louis, Mo. - The Fordham softball team rallied late in its series opener and coasted in game two to a Saturday sweep at Saint Louis, dropping the Billikens, 4-1 and 6-2, respectively. With the wins, the Rams improve to 26-17 overall, bumping their winning streak to 11 games, and 14-1 in Atlantic 10 action.
The Rams loaded the bases to start game one but couldn't score. The Billikens took advantage by plating one on a pair of hits off
Madie Aughinbaugh in the bottom half. The sophomore rebounded well, though, to hold the hosts scoreless the rest of the way. A bases-loaded walk by
Madi Shaw tied the game at one-all in the fourth and the visitors finally broke through with a three-spot in the sixth; Aughinbaugh doubled and
Lauren Quense walked, then the pair stole second and third and scored on a
Deanna Burbridge suicide squeeze and a
Paige Rauch double, respectively.
Chelsea Skrepenak added the final blow with a sacrifice fly to score Burbridge. The Rams threatened in the seventh with singles by Shaw,
Kylie Michael, and Quense, but were unable to pad their lead.Â
Fordham didn't wait to get started in game two, as Shaw launched her 10th home run of the year to score Skrepenak and give the visitors a 2-0 lead in the first inning. Quense, Burbridge, and Rauch combined again to plate the go-ahead in in the second.  Quense got on by getting hit, Burbridge smacked a double, and the pair scored on a Rauch single. That was all the offense Rauch would need, who had allowed just an unearned run to that point and saw just one run cross on a pair of hits in the sixth. Fordham added two more on groundouts by Michael and Quense, respectively.Â
Aughinbaugh and Rauch each notched their 12th win on the day, each going the distance. Shaw's home run gave the offense, along with
Skylar Johnston and Rauch, the program's fifth-ever trio of doubles-digit homers.Â
The Rams will go for the series sweep tomorrow at 1 p.m.Â
