MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (February 21, 2023) - South Florida is getting hotter and it may be caused by the St. Thomas University (STU) Softball team (7-0) who is off to the hottest start in program history. The Bobcats have swept another opponent taking a double-header against University of Fort Lauderdale (5-11). Game one was all STU for a 6-0 final, while game two had a walk-off in extras.

Kaitlin Spalding continues to be a big part in the victories going the distance to pick up her third win of the season. Spalding has thrown 14 straight scoreless frames in her last three outings. The graduate student threw a two-hitter during the first game.

The bats started in inning one and continued through the fifth putting up at least one run in each. STU had a 6-0 lead by the sixth. Gabriella Gilbert, Marla Lavado, and Bianca Palacios all recorded multi-hit games. The six runs were scored on 11 hits while no errors were made on either side.

Game two had Abbigail Smith starting in the circle. The offense was much different in the second half of the day as runs were hard to come by. The Bobcats left five runners stranded while the Eagles left seven. Each opportunity seemed to be erased by great defense and pitching on each side. 

Smith had five strikeouts on the day with no runs allowed and just three hits given up. Melody Vizcaino picked up her first collegiate victory with 3.2 innings of relief allowing no runs off two hits and collecting one strikeout.

Gilbert continued to have herself a day going 3-for-3 in game two and putting herself in scoring position every time with a stolen base. The Bobcats walked it off in the bottom of the eighth as Sophia Negron singled up the middle to bring home Samantha Suarez, who was on second as a part of the extra inning tie breaker.

Gilbert is the only Bobcat with a hot recorded in each of the first seven games and having multi hits in five of the games.

St. Thomas will now prepare to head to Central Florida to compete in the Space Coast Games.

-STU-