GROVE CITY, Pa. -- The Grove City College softball team closed the 2023 regular season Thursday afternoon by sweeping a Presidents' Athletic Conference doubleheader from visiting Saint Vincent (22-14, 12-8 PAC) at College Field. Grove City (21-14, 13-7 PAC) won the opener, 7-3, then stormed to a 13-1 victory in the nightcap. The Game Two victory gave Grove City its 21st win of the campaign, setting a program record for single-season wins.

Sophomore second baseman Maci Linhart (Columbiana, Ohio/Columbiana), sophomore third baseman Rachel Zona (New Castle, Pa./New Castle) and freshman center fielder Noel Anthony (Clarion, Pa./Clarion) all had three hits in the opener while senior Janessa Dawson (Zanesville, Ohio/Tri-Valley) finished 2 for 4. 

Grove City took a 1-0 lead in the second inning as Zona scored on a double from senior shortstop Lexi Buck (Akron, Ohio/Lake Center Christian). The Wolverines pushed the lead to 4-0 in the third inning by combining four hits and three walks. Junior catcher Emily Smyth (Lititz, Pa./Manheim Township) singled in sophomore pinch runner Ella Krarup (New Wilmington, Pa./Wilmington) to help ignite the inning. 

Consecutive bases-loaded walks to sophomore DP Brooke Brodie (Mogadore, Ohio/Mogadore) and Zona scored Linhart and senior pinch runner Clare Moran (Watertown, N.Y./Indian River). 

Saint Vincent cut the lead to 4-3 in the fourth inning but Grove City answered as Brodie singled in Dawson. In the fifth inning, Dawson drove in Anthony with a single and Linhart drove in junior left fielder Lauren McNeil (Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio/Cuyahoga Valley Christian) with a hit to center. 

Anthony also had a double for Grove City, which finished with 16 hits. 

Junior pitcher Kaitlyn Constantino (Clarion, Pa./Clarion) fired a complete game to earn her 11th win of the season. She allowed seven hits and one earned run in seven inning. 

Six Grove City players had multiple hits in the nightcap. Dawson went 3 for 3 with a double, three runs scored and three runs batted in. Smyth belted a three-run home run as part of a 2-for-3 outing. Linhart doubled, singled and scored three times while McNeil finished 2 for 2. 

Senior first baseman Michaela Ban (Kittanning, Pa./Armstrong) and junior catcher Lauren Harris (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Allegheny) both went 2 for 3 to help fuel Grove City's 14-hit attack.

Smyth's first-inning blast gave Grove City a 3-1 lead. The Wolverines added three more runs in the second as Dawson drove in McNeil with a sacrifice fly, Linhart doubled in Harris and Ban's single to right center field scored Linhart. 

Grove City broke open the game with a four-run fourth inning. McNeil scored on a Dawson single while Harris scored on a wild pitch. Later in the inning, Dawson scored on Ban's bases-loaded walk and Linhart crossed home on an error.

In the fifth inning, Dawson doubled in McNeil to spark another three-run rally. Junior Erin Mulholland (Malvern, Pa./Delaware County Christian) drove in freshman pinch runner Selah Severson (Grove City, Pa./Grove City) with a groundout and Dawson scored on a Moran single.

Dawson earned the pitching victory by allowing one earned run in five innings. She struck out one and did not walk a batter. 

Dawson extended her own single-season school record for hits as she now has 59. Linhart has scored a Grove City-record 39 hits. Constantino is tied for third on Grove City's single-season pitching list with 11 wins. 

Grove City's 1998 conference champion team held the previous single-season wins record by going 20-8. 

The Wolverines will compete in the conference tournament next week. This weekend's games will determine the final seeding for the six teams that have qualified for the conference tournament.