PLEASANTVILLE, N.Y. – The Pace University softball team earned their first doubleheader sweep of the season with a pair of wins against the University of New Haven on Thursday afternoon. An 8-0 win in six innings followed up by a 6-5 walk-off in Game Two improves the Setters' record on the season to 7-13 and 5-5 in conference play while completing a regular-season sweep of the Chargers.

Inside the Numbers
*Niyah Brown (Chino, CA/Chino Hills) was the hero in the series finale, hitting the walk-off home run in the seventh inning to complete the sweep. The freshman was 4-of-7 on the day with five RBIs and a pair of runs scored, and hit an inside-the-park homer in Game One. She now leads the Setters with four home runs on the year.
 
*Game One was controlled by Emma Bernet (Baldwinsville, NY/Charles W Baker), who delivered her fourth-straight complete game. The sophomore tossed six shutout innings, allowing five hits and a walk while striking out four. Bernet lowers her season ERA to 1.63, and has allowed just three runs over her last four starts.

*Jaclyn Flores (Escondido, CA/San Pasqual High School) and MacKenzie Garrick (South River, NJ/South River) split duties in Game Two, allowing just five hits. Neither pitcher allowed an earned run in the contest.

*Aby Brambila (Newbury Park, CA/Newbury Park) recorded a double in both games, bringing her season total to four, the second most on the team this season.

*Larissa Labs (Carlsbad, CA/San Marcos High School) went 4-for-6 on the day, collecting three RBIs and scoring three runs. The senior outfielder legged out her team-leading sixth triple in the opener.

*Pace stole four bases on the day. Ashley Lew (New City, NY/Clarkstown High School North) swiped a bag in both games, while Brianna Parks (Herkimer, NY/Herkimer) had a steal in the opener and Labs added a steal in Game Two.

Game One Recap: Pace 8, New Haven 0 (Six Innings)
While the final statline implied another effective day in the circle for Bernet as she collected her fourth win of the season, the sophomore righty found quick trouble in the first. New Haven threatened early following a leadoff double by Taylor Luzzi, who advanced to third on an error. Bernet seemed unfazed by the runner at third, recording a shallow fly out and two strikeouts to work out of the inning.
 
Pace had their first scoring opportunity in the second with a two-out rally. A Brambila double and back-to-back walks by Meagan Wells (Foster City, CA/Hillsdale) and Annie Carberry (Colorado Springs, CO/Pine Creek) loaded the bases for the Setters, but New Haven escaped the jam of their own to keep the game scoreless.

After Bernet worked around a pair of hits in the third to keep the Chargers off the board, Brown struck with her first big hit of the day. After Labs and Lindsey Ah Soon (Ewa Beach, HI/Kamehameha Kapalama) reached to begin the inning, Brown hammered a pitch to the left field wall. The freshman never stopped running, rounding the bases for a three-run inside the park home run to put Pace ahead 3-0.

Bernet allowed just one hit over her final three innings of work as the Pace offense never let off the pedal. The Blue and Gold tacked on another three runs in the fourth, as Labs tripled to drive home Lew and Wells, while Ah Soon followed her up with an RBI single to extend the Setter lead to 6-0.

A hit by pitch and walk got the Setters started in the sixth. After Parks stole third, Danielle May (Middletown, NY/Goshen) singled to bring her home. Tara Bernstein (Glen Oaks, NY/Bayside High School) hit an RBI single of her own to score Briana Ryan (Wilmington, CA/Carson), invoking the run rule and taking Game One, 8-0.

Game Two Recap: Pace 6, New Haven 5
The Setter offense picked up right where they left off to begin the backend of Thursday's doubleheader, scoring in the first inning. A leadoff walk and steal by Labs set Brown up for her fourth RBI of the day, singling to right field to drive home Pace's leadoff hitter and secure an early 1-0 lead.
 
Pace followed the same recipe for success an inning later, as Lew drew a two-out walk and stole second. It would be Labs striking at the plate, singling to center to score Lew and put the Blue and gold ahead 2-0.

The Chargers would get on the scoreboard for the first time on the day in the fourth inning. An error and back-to-back walks put New Haven within striking distance with no outs. After a sacrifice fly to score their first run, Katrina Aponte hit a double to drive home two more. Although Aponte was tagged out on the play, New Haven would secure their first lead of the day at 3-2.

The lead would be short-lived, as the Setters responded with a run of their own in the bottom half. Wells reached on a leadoff single, advancing to second on a wild pitch. A groundout advanced her to third, while Carberry hit a sacrifice fly to center to bring her home, tying the game at 3-3.

Another Pace error to begin the fifth put the Chargers in scoring position with a leadoff runner at second. A groundout and sacrifice fly would put New Haven back on top, 4-3. The Chargers tacked on another run the next inning, as the third Setter error of the game allowed Tori Schiebe to score as New Haven took a 5-3 advantage into the bottom of the sixth.

The Blue and Gold comeback began with a leadoff double off the bat of Brambila. Stephanie Wang (Arcadia, CA/Arcadia) would move her over to third two batters later with a single, while Ryan brought her home with a single of her own. After New Haven capitalized on Pace errors all game long, the Setters returned the favor as Wang came around to score on the Chargers' lone error of the contest. Tied 5-5, the stage was set for a Setter comeback victory.

Garrick put the Chargers down 1-2-3 to open up the seventh, while Brown delivered the final blow with a walk-off home run over the right-center field wall to complete the sweep as Pace earned the 6-5 win.

Up Next:
Riding a three-game winning streak, the Setters hit the road on Saturday to continue conference play. Pace will be at Assumption College for a doubleheader on Saturday beginning at 2 p.m.