CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. - The Lindenwood Softball team (22-20, 11-9 OVC) swept their doubleheader on the road at SEMO on Saturday to move into the top five of the OVC Standings. The Lions' pitching staff combined to throw 14 innings and allowed just three runs on nine hits while striking out six batters to limit the SEMO offense. 

Game One: Lindenwood 7, SEMO 3
After SEMO grabbed a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the third inning on a home run to right field, the Lindenwood offense flexed their muscles in the top of the fourth by putting up five runs. Four of the five runs came off the bat of Kylee Crowder, who hit a no-doubt Grand Slam to left center field to put the Lions in front by a score of 5-2. The other run of the inning came prior to the Crowder grand slam when Tori Hatton collected an RBI single to centerfield that brought home Madisen Noll. The Redhawks would get a run back in the fifth on an RBI double, but Emily Geary gave the Lions two more runs in the top of the sixth on a two-run home run to right field making it a 7-3 game after 5.5 innings played. Ryleigh Owens picked up her seventh win of the season in game one by throwing the first 4.2 innings of the contest. The Senior pitcher allowed three runs on five hits, and Samantha Roulanaitis added her second save of the season by throwing the final 2.1 innings of the game. Roulanaitis entered the game in the bottom of the fifth with the go-ahead run at the plate after SEMO had cut the deficit to two, and ended the SEMO threat by getting the first Redhawk batter she faced to pop out. The Sophomore added two strikeouts in the bottom of the sixth and retired the side in the seventh to help lead the Lions to their 21st win of the season and 10th OVC win. At the plate, Anna Sanders and Hatton each had two hits, while Geary and Crowder combined for six of the team's seven RBI.

Game Two: Lindenwood 5, SEMO 0
Lindenwood carried their momentum over from game one and put up three runs in the top of the second inning to grab a 3-0 lead. The Lions loaded the bases and scored their first run on an RBI walk from Noll before Hatton drove in two more runs on a two-run single up the middle that scored Teryn Brown and Sadie Sexauer. In the following inning, Brown would pick up an RBI of her own with a sacrifice fly to centerfield that scored Crowder to put the Lions up 4-0 midway through the third inning. Freshman pitcher Ava Risum got the start in the circle for the Lions and was phenomenal, pitching six innings and allowing three hits, no runs, and striking out four. The final dagger for the Lions happened in the top of the seventh when Tori Hatton hit a solo home run to left field to put another run on the board for the Lions and extended the lead to 5-0. Samantha Roulanaitis threw the seventh inning and ended the game by retiring the last two batters she faced after allowing a lead-off single. Offensively, Hatton and Crowder had two hits with Hatton leading the way with three RBI in game two. 

Lindenwood will look for the sweep over SEMO tomorrow afternoon in the final game of the series with first pitch scheduled for 12 p.m. CT.