GREENVILLE, S.C. — After several close losses to open the season, Bellarmine softball broke through on Saturday for its first win of 2023 and the first win of the Caitlyn de la Haba era.
 
Bellarmine (1-7) scored its most runs in a game in the Division I era to down Sacred Heart 13-2 (6 inn.).  The Knights dropped their second game of the day to Towson 3-1.
 
Success does not always come immediately, but de la Haba has continued to see progress in her team, and they put it all together for their first-year head coach.
 
"We hit great today with four home runs in game one," de la Haba said.  "It was an all-around team effort, and I'm so proud of how they put it all together today. The pitchers worked hard in the circle to get out of some jams, and our offense showed up and allowed our pitching and defense to play more relaxed.  In game two we outhit Towson, we just needed some better situational hitting at times. We will keep working at it, but overall really proud of how they played as a team today!"

Game One
 
There was certainly no lack of power against the Pioneers. 
 
Bellarmine fell behind 1-0 after a Grace Saad solo home run, but Alexis Hargrove answered in the third inning with her first home run of the season out to left-center to tie the score 1-1.
 
Emily O'Dee gave the Knights a 2-1 lead with a RBI single up the middle later that inning.  In the home half, Sacred Heart evened the score 2-2, scoring on a wild pitch – but the scoring would stop there for the Pioneers.
 
Bellarmine scratched another run in the fourth thanks to a Sacred Heart error, and then the bats were unleashed in the fifth and sixth innings. 
 
Leading 3-2, Megan Konermann blasted her first career home run to left-center, plating three runs for the Knights.  Hargrove followed with her second bomb of the day, homering to left field.  A pair of unearned runs later in the inning helped give Bellarmine a commanding 9-2 lead.
 
The hit that sealed the run-rule victory for the Knights came from senior Olivia Bricker in the sixth.  Bricker had homered just once in her Bellarmine career back in 2021, and her second career home run with the Knights was a big one.  Bricker smoked a grand-slam to right-center field, giving Bellarmine a 13-2 lead.  The Knights held Sacred Heart scoreless in the home half to lock up the win in six innings.
 
After a slow start to the year at the plate, Bellarmine exploded for 13 hits against Sacred Heart.  The Knights also drew six walks and were helped by four errors from the Pioneers.
 
Bellarmine's 13 runs were the most in a single for the program since Feb. 10, 2018 against Christian Brothers (14-8). 
 
Hargrove and Carson Goatley each had three hits, while O'Dee connected for two base-knocks.  Bricker, Konermann, and Hargrove all had multiple RBI with their home runs.
 
Goatley got the start in the circle, pitching the first two innings, while Jensen closed it out with four shutout innings.  Jensen claimed the first win of the year for the Knights, allowing just three hits.


Game Two

Despite out-hitting Towson 6-3 in game two, the Tigers used timely hitting to pull out the win.
 
With two walks, a single, and a productive ground-out to shortstop from Emma Armstrong, Towson led 1-0 after the first.
 
In the third, Mackenzie Lake followed a Cori Jones single with a RBI triple.  Lake then came in to score on a RBI groundout from Madyson Peters, giving Towson a 3-0 advantage.
 
Bellarmine fought back in the fourth, starting with singles from O'Dee and Ellie Alvarez.  O'Dee advanced to third on a muffed throw, and Alvarez stole second, setting up two runners in scoring position.  Goatley delivered a sacrifice fly to score O'Dee, but the Knights were unable to plate any more runs.
 
Hargrove drew a leadoff walk in the seventh, but Towson retired three straight batters to close the game. 
 
All six of Bellarmine's hits in game two were singles, recorded by Greenwell, Collins, O'Dee, Alvarez, Goatley, and Hargrove.
 
Claire Lehmkuhler pitched the entire game for Bellarmine in the circle, allowing just three runs over six innings with four strikeouts.
 
Bellarmine concludes its weekend in Greenville with a true road game against Furman at 2:00 p.m. on Sunday.  The game can be viewed on ESPN+.
 
For more coverage of Bellarmine athletics, follow us on Twitter (@BUKnights), Instagram (BUKnights), and Facebook (BUKnights).