ROME, Ga. – No. 25 West Florida used a four-run fifth inning in a come-from-behind victory and fell in a pitcher's duel to split a series-opening Saturday doubleheader with Shorter on the road. With the split, West Florida stands just a half-game behind No. 17 Alabama Huntsville for first place in the Gulf South Conference standings, at 20-9 in league play.
 
The front end of the doubleheader marked a couple of milestones for Argonauts. Meghan Toney scored the 100th run of her career in the fifth inning, and Becca Taylor earned her 50th career win. She is just the 10th Argo to hit that mark, and her 72 starts also rank 10th in the UWF record books.
 
The Game 1 victory also marked West Florida's 20th GSC win this year, making the Argonauts the second team in the league to hit 20 conference wins, and they did so in the same amount of games as Alabama Huntsville. While West Florida won 23 GSC contests last year, this marks just the second time since 2006 that UWF has accomplished the feat. With four conference matchups remaining this season, West Florida's 43 GSC wins over the last two seasons are the most since the team won 47 between 2005-06.
 
GAME 1: UWF 5, Shorter 3
Taylor earned her GSC-best 21st win of the year in Game 1, spinning seven innings and striking out six with no walks. She retired 10 of the first 11 Shorter batters she saw before the Hawks struck for three runs in the fourth.
 
UWF held the lead heading into the fourth inning, however, as catcher Caitlin Steel led off the third with a triple to right center field and Toney brought her in on a fielder's choice to make it 1-0 West Florida.
 
GSC doubles leader Ericka Bynum evened things up in the bottom of the fourth, hitting her 10th home run of the year before Kameron Carter doubled to right center and Dani Lukas singled to put two runners on. Carter would soon come around on a groundout to second, and Taylor Martin's RBI single brought in the third run of the inning to give Shorter the 3-1 advantage.
 
West Florida wasted no time getting back on top in the fifth, with Steel and Toney reaching and eventually scoring on Rhiannon Sassman's opposite field two-run double. Freshman Callan Taylor singled in Sassman for the game-winning run, and Tiona Hill singled through the right side for a UWF insurance run to make it 5-3.
 
Shorter threatened in each of the final three innings, picking up two hits but ultimately being outmatched by Taylor. Things looked good for the Hawks in the sixth, with Carter and Lukas reaching on a single and double, but Taylor struck out Shorter's Savannah Thomas and Toney turned a 4-3 double play on a popup from Martin to end the inning.
 
Taylor's 21 wins this year are the most for a UWF pitcher since Jillian Lafrance had 24 in 2009. This also marked the ninth start this season that Taylor has had at least five strikeouts and no more than one walk.
 
With two walks in the game, Sassman now has 29 on the year and has moved into second place in the GSC, behind only West Alabama's Audrey Diekmann.
 
GAME 2: UWF 0, Shorter 1
Sarah Maloney was lights-out in Game 2 of Saturday's doubleheader, allowing just two hits through the first six innings of play and striking out five batters in the first five frames. Maloney also went without a walk in Saturday's action, marking the second time this year that she has gone at least five innings with five strikeouts and no walks (3/7 against Barry).
 
Unfortunately for West Florida, Shorter's Hannah Draper was nearly as locked-in. Draper went the distance for the Hawks, striking out three, walking two and allowing only two hits.
 
UWF put on a threat in the top of the first but Draper was able to escape without any damage done. Maloney and Draper then retired 19 of the next 23 combined batters they saw, in what was one of the best-pitched games this year for each.
 
Shorter showed some signs of offensive life in the second with a double from Dani Lukas, but Maloney got a groundout and struck out Draper to end the inning and hold Shorter scoreless. Sassman led off the fourth with a bunt single and stole second base, but the possible rally came to an end with a high flyout to center field from Hill and a line drive from Baleigh Boltz that found Bynum's glove at first.
 
Shorter walked off with the win after Bynum doubled to lead off the seventh and eventually came around on a single up the middle from Lukas, giving Shorter the 1-0 victory. The game marked just the second time this year that this high-powered UWF offense has been shut out. West Florida has shut out its opponents 12 times this season.
 
Maloney's performance was of little surprise, as the junior is one of just two pitchers in the GSC with more strikeouts than innings pitched (89 in 87.2 innings) and ranks second in the league in opponent batting average (.215).
 
UWF goes for the series win on Sunday afternoon with a 1 pm ET start at Alto Park in Rome, Georgia.