GAMBIER, Ohio – After splitting games with The College of Wooster last weekend, the Kenyon College softball team returned Saturday to the Softball Complex, where it dropped both games of a doubleheader to the nationally-ranked Wittenberg University Tigers. Both games ended in 8-0 scores.

Although the Tigers' offense was impressive, the pitching performances of Chelsea Zang and Abby Haab were the stories of the day. The two Wittenberg juniors combined to throw 11 innings of shutout softball. They struck out six, while allowing just six hits and two walks.

In game one, the Tigers offense started supporting its pitching right away. In the top of the first inning, sophomore Abby Curnutte connected on a two-run homer to score freshman Olivia Hopkins, who reached earlier via a Kenyon error. Later in the inning, Zang helped her own cause with a solo home run.

Now trailing 3-0, the Ladies could only respond with a single from sophomore Amanda Ogata in the bottom of the first.

Meanwhile, the homers kept coming for the Tigers, who got a grand slam from senior Casey Hobbs in the top of the second inning. Then, in the fourth, they added an unearned run to put the eight-run mercy rule into play.

The rest of Kenyon's game-one offense amounted to singles from junior Madi Maldonado and freshman Keely Sweet, who also ripped a two-out double in the bottom of the fifth, but an interference call later cleared her off the bag and ended the game.

Much of the same took place for Wittenberg in the second game as Zang opened with a first-inning, three-run bomb that scored both Curnutte and Hobbs. The Ladies countered with a bases-loaded situation in the bottom half of the inning, but were unable to capitalize.

Sweet, who was game two's starting pitcher for the Ladies, was able to grab two quick outs in the top of the second, but a bases-loaded walk to Curnutte and a two-RBI single from Zang helped the Tigers take a 6-0 lead.

Sweet kept the Ladies' hopes alive by keeping the Tigers off the scoreboard for the next three innings, but back-to-back RBI singles from sophomore Katy Baumgartner and freshman Wendy Hawk in the sixth frame allowed the Tigers to reach that eight-run margin and once again end the game early.

Kenyon's offense came up with just two hits in game two. Maldonado had a lead-off single in the first and Amanda Coyle doubled in the bottom of the fifth.

The losses dropped the Ladies to 11-21 overall and 3-5 in the North Coast Athletic Conference. Wittenberg, winners of ten straight games, improved to 22-4 overall and a perfect 8-0 in conference competition.

The Ladies will be in action again Wednesday, when the Hiram College Terriers visit for an NCAC doubleheader set to begin at 3:30 p.m.