Game One Score: UAlbany 6, Stony Brook 2 (8 Innings)
 
Game Two Score: UAlbany 2, Stony Brook 0
 
Location: Albany Field in Albany, N.Y.
 
Records: UAlbany (18-17, 8-6 America East) | Stony Brook (23-11, 7-3 America East)
 
Short Story: The University at Albany softball team took both game of today's doubleheader against first-place rival Stony Brook, winning two very close contests. Briana Garrett pitched a gem for UAlbany in game one, going eight innings and allowing just two earned runs. Maranda Jimenez proved to be the game one hero however, tying the game in the seventh to give the Great Danes extra life and hitting a game-winning walk-off grand slam in the eighth to win it. The walk-off for Jimenez, No. 2, came with the score tied at 2-2 with two balls and two strikes. In game two, Wendi Hammond tossed seven scoreless innings to preserve the win for the Great Danes. Kelly Barkevich's two-run homerun was the difference maker, representing the only runs scored of the ballgame for either team.
 
Coach Chris Cannata: "I'm proud of our performance today. We played two great games against a good team. We put it all together with great pitching, big time clutch hits and solid defense."

Key Stats Game One:

• Garrett pitched all eight innings for UAlbany, allowing just the two earned runs on eight hits. She recorded three strikeouts and didn't walk a single batter.
• Jimenez was the hero of the afternoon, tying the game in the bottom of the seventh and winning it in the bottom of the eighth. She finished with two hits, a single and a grand slam, and five RBIs.
• Madison Petrella also recorded an RBI off of a solo homerun in the second, her seventh of the season.
• Jimenez, Petrella, and Caitlyn Mitros all finished with two hits. Mitros recorded a single and a double and represented the tying run in the seventh.

Key Stats Game Two:

• Hammond started in game two for UAlbany and picked up where Garrett left off. The sophomore tossed all seven innings and didn't allow a run. She struck out five, walked just one, and allowed only a single extra-base hit.
• Kelly Barkevich was the difference maker in game two, driving in the lone runs of the game off a two-run homerun in the fourth.
• Morgan Petty joined Barkevich as the only Great Dane with an extra-base hit, notching a triple.
• Barkevich, Petty, Mitros, Alexis Phillips, Katie Falotico, and Lové Drumgole all finished with one hit each.  

How it Happened Game One:

• Petrella got the Great Danes on the board first, sending one over the center field fence in the second inning.
• Barkevich made a highlight reel grab at the hot corner in the fourth, taking an extra base hit away from Stony Brook's Rahrich.
• The Seawolves tied it in the fifth off the bat of Nowakowski, hitting a long ball to left field.
• Stony Brook took the lead in the sixth on a hard-hit ball to shortstop from McCarvill, scoring McFarland from second base.
• Jimenez showed some late game heroics, driving in the game-tying run in the bottom of the final frame. She singled in Mitros from second with a hit up the middle.
• Jimenez once again saved the day for UAlbany, this time in the bottom of the eighth. With the bases loaded with two out, two balls, two strikes, and the game tied at 2-2, No. 2 hit a grand slam to hand the Great Danes a dramatic win in game one. Jimenez fouled off eight pitches during the at-bat.

How it Happened Game Two:

• Stony Brook looked to take the lead in the second after a sacrifice fly to left from Rahrich, but the run was taken off the board after UAlbany appealed at third base for the runner leaving early.
• After a leadoff triple from Petty, two runs scored for the Great Danes after Barkevich sent one creeping over the center field fence for a homerun in the fourth. The longball proved to be the difference maker in the win for the Great Danes.

Next: The two archrivals run it back tomorrow afternoon as the Great Danes and Seawolves close out the weekend's three-game series. Join the team at Albany Field as the class of 2020 is honored on senior day. Game time is set for 12:00 p.m. with senior day festivities taking place pregame.