The Misericordia softball team split a doubleheader with King's, Thursday afternoon in Wilkes-Barre, erupting for 10 runs in a shutout of the Monarchs before falling, 4-2, in the second game.
The Cougars are now 7-9 on the season and 2-2 in conference play as King's goes to 12-6 and earns their first win in the MAC Freedom this season.
Maddie Holub and Jessie McDonough combined for seven RBI and Kiersten Pflueger, Jessica Pluta and Kayla Stephani each scored two runs as the offense matched its highest offensive scoring output this season in game one.
Brooke Moyle was dominant in the circle, shutting out the Monarchs while allowing just five hits and striking out one.
Moyle went out to pitch for the first time in the game with a 2-0 lead thanks to clutch hitting from Jessie McDonough in the top of the first. After MU loaded the bases on a hit by pitch, walk and single, the sophomore hit a single to left field, scoring Pflueger and Pluta.
The Cougars extended their lead in the fourth, as seven of the first eight batters recorded hits to begin the inning. Stephani began the inning with a single, followed by a double from Ciara DeLong. Holub drove them both in by lining a triple to right field and Amanda Butera followed with an RBI single to make it 5-0.
After the Monarchs changed pitchers, the Cougars kept hitting, getting RBI singles from Pflueger, McDonough, Moyle and Holub to open up a 10-0 lead.
Moyle shut down the Monarchs in the fourth and fifth inning to secure the victory via the run rule.
In game two, Butera went 3-4 with a run scored and Maddie Stebich hit a two-run home run to account for the scoring for Misericorida.
Ashlee Brosky dueled with Kristina Kocher as the game was scoreless for two innings before King's took a 1-0 lead in the third. The score remained 1-0 until the fifth when King's extended their lead to 4-0.
Misericordia responded with two runs in the top of the sixth on a home run to left center by Stebich to cut the deficit in half.
After Jordan Hoffmann kept the Monarch off the board in the bottom half of the sixth, the Cougars threatened in the seventh. Holub and Butera singled with two outs to bring the go-ahead run to the plate, but Kocher got Pluta to fly out to right to end the game.
Misericordia is back in action Tuesday at 3:00 when they host Delaware Valley.
