RADNOR, Pa. (Apr. 20, 2016) – Junior Bree VanReenen (Elkton, Md.) went 3-for-4 with a pair of doubles and drove in the eventual winning run in leading the Widener University softball team to a 9-8 victory over Cabrini in the nightcap of a doubleheader on Wednesday afternoon. The Cavaliers won the opener by a 4-3 score to salvage the split.
 
Widener scored the first four runs of the nightcap and held off several comeback attempts by the Cavaliers. Junior Ally Horvath (Chalfont, Pa.) most notably hit an RBI triple in the second before senior Heather Forward (Philadelphia, Pa.) blasted a single up the middle to plate classmate Alie Alkins (Aston, Pa.) one frame later and give the Pride a 4-0 lead.
 
But after senior Taylor Church (Glen Mills, Pa.) drove in a pair of runs with a double and sophomore Katie Rabuck (Hegins, Pa.) followed with an RBI single to make it 8-2 in favor of the Pride, Cabrini roared back in the bottom of the fifth. Amber Dietrich drove in a pair of Cavalier runs by singling, and Emily Smull sent Dietrich to the dish with a hit up the middle to slash the margin to 8-6 through five frames. Reliever Lindsey Manera (Mount Laurel, N.J.) got out of the inning by fanning Alexandria Ramos.
 
Widener, however, would get another insurance run that would prove to be the difference in the top of the sixth. Batting with runners on the corners, VanReenen provided the clutch hit with a single to right which scored Alkins. The Pride looked to add to their lead when sophomore Taylor Allen (Northeast, Md.) flied out to left for the second out, but Forward was gunned down at home for the inning's third out. The Pride then managed to hold off one more comeback attempt by the Cavaliers in the bottom of the sixth despite committing two errors.
 
Rabuck earned the victory for Widener and kept her record perfect at 6-0 this season. She gave up eight hits and two unearned runs over four innings. Horvath picked up her second save by throwing 1.2 scoreless frames and not allowing a hit. Cabrini's Kiley Sharp suffered the loss after being lit up for 14 hits and eight runs, including seven earned, in 4.1 innings of work.
 
The teams exchanged runs to begin the opener, as Jess Giordano homered to left in the bottom of the second for the Cavs before Horvath came home for the Pride in the third on an infield error. Widener then took its first lead when Forward blasted a two-run single down the line in left, but Cabrini (17-14) was able to tie the game by using the long ball again on a homer which came off the bat of Lindsay Savar. The Cavaliers completed the rally in walk-off fashion when Darian Caputo hit a sacrifice fly to right which scored Dietrich.
 
Giordano earned the win for Cabrini after surrendering eight hits and three unearned runs over seven innings of work. Widener's Alexis Schengrund (Hillsborough, N.J.) was tagged with the loss and fell to 11-3. She was responsible for seven hits and four runs, which were all earned, while striking out six in 6.1 frames.
 
Widener (24-6) returns home to host Penn State Brandywine for a doubleheader on Friday, Apr. 22 at 4:00 p.m.