FAIRMONT, W.Va. – The West Virginia State University softball team picked up momentum late in the regular season with a pair of road wins at Fairmont State on Friday. The Yellow Jackets won the first contest of the doubleheader, 8-2, before winning again in the second game, 5-1.

POST-GAME RECORDS
WVSU: 20-22, 17-13 MEC
FSU: 17-23, 13-17 MEC

GAME 1: WVSU 8, FSU 2
The first hit of the game wasn't until the bottom of the third as both pitchers were locked in a pitchers duel, but Fairmont stranded the lead-off single. Paige Scruggs hit into a fielder's choice, and then scored on a Tori Lambert RBI single into right field. 

Layla Mendoza drew a walk to lead-off the fifth inning then scored on an opposite field single by Thompson two batters later. Thompson came home when Scruggs fired a double into left center field to put the Jackets up by three. 

An Emily Moore single in the sixth inning scored Kasey Murphy giving the Jackets a comfortable four run lead.

State sent eight runners to bat in the top of the seventh with a Murphy single scoring Thompson, an Emma Ruth sac fly scoring Lambert, and a Layla Mendoza double scoring Addi Dillow. 

Murphy also scored on a fielding error putting the Jackets up by eight runs.

Fairmont State eventually scored two in the bottom of the inning for the final tally.

Emilee Walker pitched a complete game and got her first win of the season in her third start this year, fanning six. Murphy went two-for-three with an RBI and two runs scored. 

GAME 2: WVSU 5, FSU 1
The Yellow Jackets gained the lead early on thanks to an error made by Fairmont's catcher. Hannah Wilson struck out swinging but reached base after the ball rolled past the catcher. She then proceeded to steal second and third base. Autumn Thompson singled into center field to score Wilson in the top of the first, 1-0.

Scoring by both sides halted until the top of the fifth when another unearned run was plated by WVSU. Layla Mendoza grabbed a two-bagger on a fielding error and then ended up scoring when Wilson reached base on an error by the first baseman, 2-0.

The Falcons cut the lead in half in the bottom of the fifth with an unearned run of their own. A pinch runner on first was allowed to get to third after a passed ball and a fielding error. A single into right field then scored the pinch runner, 2-1.

After a scoreless sixth inning, West Virginia State tacked on three insurance runs in the top of the seventh. Thompson drove in two runs by singling to right field with the bases loaded, 4-1. Thompson then scored herself on Kasey Murphy's single through the left side of the infield, 5-1.

Murphy gave up a single in the bottom of the seventh but retired the next three batters to pick up her ninth win of the season. She only gave up six hits in seven innings pitched and did not allow an earned run. She tallied four strikeouts with just one base on balls.

State's regular season finale will be Saturday with a road trip to Frostburg State. First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m. Live stats and streaming will be available for both ends of the doubleheader.