JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – The Golden Eagle softball team snapped a modest losing streak with an offensive outburst on Saturday, splitting a pair of contests at Pitt-Johnstown. Clarion (4-10, 2-8 PSAC West) dropped a 6-5 nail-biter in Game 1 before exploding for a 14-1 six-inning rout in Game 2.
 
Clarion's ability to score runs in bunches has been its hallmark all season long, and that again proved to be the case on Saturday, as all 19 of Clarion's runs came over the course of the last 10 innings of the day. The Golden Eagles' five runs in the first game all came in the top of the fourth inning, nearly erasing a 6-0 lead for the Mountain Cats and trimming it to just one run. They weren't able to tally another run the rest of the way in dropping the early game, but they more than made up for it with a firework show in the second. Clarion scored three or more runs in three of their six offensive innings in the nightcap, including a six-run sixth inning that iced the contest early.
 
Brooke Cline had a huge day at the plate, going 1-for-4 with two RBIs and a run scored in the first game, and following with a 3-for-4, four RBI performance in the second game. She smacked her team-leading third triple of the season in the top of the sixth inning to clear the bases, driving in three runs and setting the lead to double digits. Rebecca Kelley went a combined 5-for-9 with a double, a home run and two RBIs.
 
The Mountain Cats struck first in both contests, starting with an RBI walk drawn in the top of the second inning in Game 1. They jumped on Kelley (1-4) for five runs in the third inning, though Chelsea Liroff entered and kept their bats silent the rest of the way. Clarion responded with a five-run inning of their own in the fourth, starting with an RBI single from Hannah Norton. Liroff roped a double to center field to Kelley, and Beka McClymonds drove in Nicole Collins on an infield single to make it 6-3. Cline followed with an opposite-field single to right, plating McClymonds and Liroff to cut the lead to 6-5.
 
Liroff kept things tight, and in fact did not allow a Pitt-Johnstown runner to advance past first base over the final three innings of action. Clarion had the opportunity to pull even in the top of the sixth after McClymonds smacked a single to right center to put runners at first and second with one out. Carissa Giordano advanced the runners to second and third on a bunt attempt, but Cline grounded out to third to end the threat. Kelley hit a two-out double in the top of the seventh to again threaten, but Norton popped out to end the game at 6-5.
 
Pitt-Johnstown took a 1-0 lead in Game 2 after Olivia Porter's leadoff triple led to a run on an infield error, but Megan Anderson (1-3) kept the scorecard clean for the remainder of the game as she shut down the Mountain Cat offense. The last best attempt for Pitt-Johnstown to get back into the game came in the bottom of the fifth inning when the first two batters reached. Porter hit a two-out single through the left side to put runners on second and third, but Anderson induced a groundout to end the inning. The sophomore threw six innings, allowing one run on five hits with two strikeouts and no walks.
 
Meanwhile, offensively, the Golden Eagles got it started by taking the lead in the second inning. Brooke McCanna got the ball rolling with a two-run double to left-center to score Collins and Norton, and later scored herself when Giordano reached on an error, making it 3-1. Giordano added RBIs in the fourth and fifth innings, including a sacrifice fly in the former and an infield single in the latter. Kelley added a two-run homer to score herself and Jessica Cartia in the fourth, making it 6-1, and Cline drew a bases-loaded walk to make it 8-1.
 
Norton officially put the Golden Eagles within reach of ending the game early in the top of the sixth, bringing home Alyssa Stitt when she reached on an error by the shortstop. McCanna brought Kelley home in a similar fashion, and Cline cleared the bases with an opposite-field triple down the right field line to make it 13-1. Cartia followed with an RBI infield single to score Cline, setting the final deficit at 14-1.