CLEVELAND, Ohio – Case Western Reserve University (5-3) won a non-conference doubleheader over Kenyon College (0-2) on Saturday at Mather Park. The Spartans won 11-0 in the opener before notching a 16-2 victory in the second affair.
 
For the Ladies, it was their first games since March 11, 2020, a span of 374 days.
 
GAME ONE
 
Case pitcher Sidney Brannam retired the Kenyon side in the first frame, setting the tone for the Spartans to jump ahead. In the home half of the inning, Case's first four batters reached base with Sydney Wagner and KaiLi Gross totaling three RBI with a single and two-run double, respectively.
 
By the end of one, it was 6-0 Case.
 
Brannam continued her strong play, allowing just one hit with six strikeouts in four innings of work. In that time, the home squad attained a 9-0 advantage through a trio of frames.
 
Kenyon finally got something positive offensively in the fourth. Clare McMahon had a lead-off single but the Ladies could not do anything with it. After that, Kenyon found just one more hit coming to Madde Hyland in the fifth.
 
GAME TWO
 
Case's offense continued to find success, highlighted by a Sarah Miller grand slam in the fourth.
 
Before that blast though, the Ladies got their first run and lead of the early season. Right from the get-go, McMahon doubled to left field and two batters later, Emily Pater drove her in with a single to left center.
 
That advantage was short-lived, however, as Case rallied with four runs in the bottom of the first.
 
Kenyon got a pair of outs in the first three at-bats, but Arisa Cleaveland started the two-out rally with a double to left center. Gross followed with an RBI double of her own before Hope Yashnik closed the frame with an infield, run-scoring single.
 
The Spartans added another run in the second before the Ladies pulled the score to 5-2 in the third. Once again, McMahon led things off with a double, this time down the left-field line. Junior Kassie Rimel followed a few batters later and drove McMahon home with a single to right center.
 
Kenyon's spurt of energy there ended, though, as the home squad came back up in the bottom of the third and plated six runs with Gross and Miller hitting a pair of home runs and driving in four. By game's end, Case had earned a 16-2 victory.
 
The long-awaited restart for the Ladies will continue again on the road next weekend. On the 27th, Kenyon will try and gain some more ground with a trip to Ohio Wesleyan University for two games starting at 1 p.m.