CLARION, Pa. – The Golden Eagle softball team came up just six outs short of their first win of the season on Wednesday, but they were unable to hold off a hard charging IUP in dropping both ends of a doubleheader to the Crimson Hawks.  IUP defeated Clarion (0-27, 0-4 PSAC Central) 17-5 in the first game and 12-8 in the second.  The Golden Eagles will host two more division doubleheaders this weekend, starting with Mansfield on Friday and Lock Haven on Saturday.
 
Clarion's effort in the late game was very nearly enough to win, as the Golden Eagles opened up an 8-3 lead on the Crimson Hawks in the fifth inning thanks to a three-run homer from Jessica Cartia.  IUP rallied back, however, scoring seven runs in the sixth inning to take a 10-8 lead and adding a pair of insurance runs in the seventh. 
 
Cartia drove in the first run of the late game in the bottom of the first inning, lifting a ball to center field to bring Moriah Lynn home on a sacrifice fly.  The Crimson Hawks took a 3-1 lead on a single by Jackie Toki in the third inning, but the Golden Eagles responded with a big third inning of their own.  Rebecca Kelley got things started by lining a two-run double into right field, scoring Cartia and Makenzie Wolfe, and Nicole Collins bashed her second home run of the season over the left field fence to put her team ahead 5-3.
 
Starter Kira Smith put up zeroes in the fourth and fifth innings, and Cartia nearly brought the house down in the bottom of the fifth.  After Taylor Nonnenberg and Wolfe reached base to lead off the inning, Cartia launched a three-run shot against the wind and over the left field fence to make it 8-3.  IUP escaped the inning without further damage, though, and took a 10-8 lead when Lauren Goetz lined a double off reliever Macy Rubin (0-11).  Megan Risinger pitched scoreless sixth and seventh innings for the win.
 
The Crimson Hawks enjoyed a dominant win in the first game, scoring 10 runs off the starter Rubin to seal the win early on.  Kelley popped a solo home run in the bottom of the second inning to cut the lead to 3-1 and added another RBI in the fourth to make it 8-2, but that would be all the offense for the Golden Eagles until a two-run double by Wolfe in the bottom of the seventh inning made it 17-5.