MOBILE, Ala. – The University of West Florida softball team split a Wednesday doubleheader at Spring Hill, taking a win in Game 1 and falling in Game 2. With the split, UWF is 13-6 on the year, and Spring Hill is 7-7.
 
Courtney McLellan and Kara Wilson led UWF with four hits apiece in the doubleheader, and each added a double and an RBI. Teala Howard and Jacquelynne Poling had three hits each, and Poling led the team in slugging (.857) for the afternoon while hitting her first home run of the year. Howard stretched her hitting streak to 14 games, with one hit in Game 1 and two more in Game 2.
 
Grace Gilbert turned in another strong start, earning the win in Game 1 after spinning five shutout innings. Over her last four appearances, Gilbert has lowered her ERA from 4.57 to 2.93. Montana Young threw five innings of relief on Wednesday, striking out seven with no walks and just one run allowed.
 
UWF will head to Auburn Montgomery on Friday and Saturday for the team's first road conference series of the season.
 
GAME 1: UWF 2, SHC 0
Gilbert threw another gem on Wednesday, allowing just two hits and striking out two with no walks or runs allowed. Gilbert also induced 10 groundouts against the Badgers.
 
She and SHC pitcher Hannah Brenton matched zeroes for the first five innings, until UWF broke through for two runs in the top of the sixth. Ally Merrill laced a triple to left field and scored on a throwing error to score the first run, before Jacquelynne Poling homered to left just two batters later.
 
The two runs were plenty of support for Gilbert and reliever Montana Young. Gilbert improved to 3-3 this year, and Young earned her first career save after striking out four and not walking a batter over the final two innings of the game.
 
Gilbert has been lights-out over her last four outings. She has a 0.79 ERA with 11 strikeouts and a .190 opponent batting average since February 27.
 
The senior got a slick 6-4-3 double play in the fourth and escaped a jam with two runners on and nobody out in the fifth – she got a strikeout, a groundout, and a fly ball to end the frame.
 
GAME 2: UWF 5, SHC 6
Spring Hill scored quickly in Game 2 and took a 3-0 lead in the second inning. Mika Garcia and Kara Wilson added RBIs in the top of the third, but SHC would strike again for three more in the bottom of the third and fourth to give the Badgers a 6-2 lead.
 
UWF would rally in the later innings, scoring a run in the fifth, sixth, and seventh innings. Ally Merrill and Kayla Mayo added sacrifice flies in the fifth and sixth, and Courtney McLellan had an RBI single up the middle to cut the deficit to 6-5 in the top of the seventh.
 
Kara Wilson went 4-for-4 in Game 2, marking UWF's first 4-hit game of the year and the first of Wilson's career.
 
West Florida starter Kelsey Sweatt was charged with four earned runs in the loss and fell to 5-2 on the year. Young entered the game in the fourth allowed a run and four hits over three innings, striking out three batters.