Canton, NY - Freshman Jamie Bridge (Plymouth, CT) was a tough-luck loser in the first game when she came on in relief, but the righty came back strike out 14 in the nightcap of a doubleheader for the Clarkson University Softball team as the Golden Knights gained a split against SUNY Canton, winning game two 4-2 after falling in the opener 4-3 on a walk-off single.

The Golden Knights moved to 5-21 overall, their fifth victory in the last seven games, while SUNY Canton is now 6-17 overall. Clarkson will head to the southern tier to face Alfred State on Wednesday afternoon.

In the opener, it appeared as if the game was going to head to extras scoreless but SUNY Canton tallied a pair of unearned runs in the bottom of the fifth to get things going. A two run double to left gave the Kangaroos a 2-0 lead, but Clarkson responded with a run in the top half of the sixth when Ali Schwenzfeier (East Haddam, CT) delivered a two-out RBI-single to send Lou Terwilliger (Putney, VT) home after she had led off the inning with walk. Clarkson gained the lead in the top of the seventh when Lindsey Walsh (Lynn, MA) drove in Kelsie St. Louis (Tupper Lake, NY) with back-to-back doubles. After a pair of line outs, Bridge singled home Jenn Latham (Fort Ann, NY), who had come in to pinch run, to give Clarkson a 3-2 lead. However, in the bottom half of the seventh a bloop single just outside of the infield allowed the winning run to come home, sending the Knights to the loss.

Fans would not have to wait as long for offense in the second game as Clarkson scored a pair in the second inning to take the lead. Alycia Short (Norfolk, NY) hit a groundball to the first baseman to send one run in from third and Bridge followed with a single to center to plate the second. A two-out double send a pair of unearned runs home against Bridge in the fifth inning to knot up the score 2-2, but Bridge started a rally in the top of the seventh with a leadoff double to put pressure on the Kangaroos. Terwilliger singled and moved to second on the throw as the Knights had runners on second and third with no outs. Two batters later, Schwenzfeier came through with a single that plated the pair and gave the Knights a 4-2 edge. Bridge then worked a scoreless seventh, striking out the side for the fourth time in five innings to complete the victory.

Bridge had 14 strikeouts in the second game after whiffing five in the first contest in relief, and finished 3-for-4 at the plate in game two. Terwilliger had two hits in the second game, as did Schwenzfeier, and Lindsey Walsh also produced a two-hit effort in the opener. On the pitching rubber in the first game for the Knights was Tirzah Smith (Tully, NY) and she finished with five strikeouts and allowed just three hits in 4.2 innings of work.