THE BASICS:

GAME 1 RESULT: IPFW 12, Hartford 3
GAME 2 RESULT: Winthrop 7, Hartford 4
LOCATION: Clearwater, Fla.
RECORDS: IPFW (5-16), Hartford (1-14), Winthrop (10-13)

THE LEAD:
The Hartford softball team opened its spring trip on a sour note, falling at the hands of IPFW and Winthrop on the opening day of the USF-Under Armour Invitational.

GAME 1: IPFW 12, HARTFORD 3
IPFW used a six-run third to change the momentum en route to a 12-3 victory. Lexi Wilkerson had two hits in a losing effort for the Hawks, while Sawyer Fried delivered a run and an RBI.
The Mastadons delivered 16 hits to garner the win, with Taylor Lyman driving in three runs. Sarah Lazarowich struck out five in a complete-game victory for IPFW, while Wilkerson was credited with the loss for the Hawks.

HOW THEY SCORED, GAME 1:
• IPFW got out to a 1-0 lead in the first on an RBI single from Jessica Murray.
• The Hawks responded immediately, getting on the board with Fried delivering an RBI single.
• Later in the inning, the Hawks took the lead, 2-1, with Fried scoring on a wild pitch.
• IPFW took control with six runs on six hits and an error in the third.
• The Mastodons added two runs, one earned in the fifth.
• In the sixth, IPFW strung four hits together to plate three more runs to make it 12-2.
• Hartford got a run back on an RBI groundout from Peyton Fisher in the bottom of the sixth to complete the scoring.

GAME 2: WINTHROP 7, HARTFORD 4
Fisher delivered two hits and drove in a pair of runs, and Danielle DeMarco added two hits as well, but a four-run second gave Winthrop a lead it would not relinquish in the second game of the day. Haley Zuehlke had a three-hit day in the win for the Eagles.
Kiley Majette collected a complete-game victory for Winthrop, striking out two, while Bianca Ross was carded with a tough-luck loss, allowing just three earned runs in her seven innings of work.
 
HOW THEY SCORED, GAME 2:
• Winthrop got on the board in the first with an RBI single by Megan Winningham.
• The Eagles tacked on four runs on two hits and two walks in the second to make it 5-0.
• Hartford got on the board in the fifth with Elizabeth Newkirk scoring Jenice Aloyo on a sac fly.
• Winthrop pushed the lead to 7-1 with solo runs in the fifth and the seventh.
• Hartford staged a rally in the bottom of the seventh, starting with a Marisa Ferguson RBI single that plated DeMarco.
• Fisher delivered a two-run double, plating Ferguson and Ross, to close the scoring. 


UP NEXT:
Hartford gets right back to action at the USF-Under Armour Invitational on Saturday with games against Bowling Green (9:15 a.m.) and Southern Illinois (11:30). Updates will be provided as they become available on HartfordHawks.com and via Twitter (@HartfordSB).