SUMMARY  
The University of Maryland Eastern Shore hosted Virginia Union on Tuesday afternoon, sweeping the doubleheader with victories of 9-1 in game one and 11-7 in game two. 

The Hawks scored a combined 20 runs across both games, powered by home runs from Skylar Skinner (2), Paige Perkins (1), and Amaya Nunez (1).

THE SCORE 
Maryland Eastern Shore Hawks (1–4, 0–0 MEAC) — 9
Virginia Union (0–3, 0–0 CIAA) —  1

Maryland Eastern Shore Hawks (2–4, 0–0 MEAC) — 11
Virginia Union (2–4, 0–0 SIAC) —  7

HOW IT HAPPENED 
On Tuesday, the University of Maryland Eastern Shore softball team dominated Virginia Union in a doubleheader, winning 9-1 behind a strong offensive showing and a complete game from Paris Richards.

The Hawks scored first in the bottom of the second inning, plating two runs to take control. Kensey Mentzer's sacrifice fly to left field scored Richards, and Paige Perkins followed with an RBI single to bring home Emily Gunther, giving UMES a 2-0 lead.

Virginia Union scored its only run on an RBI groundout, cutting the deficit to 2-1. Later in the inning, UMES extended its lead to 3-1 on a solo home run from Skylar Skinner, followed by an RBI single from Gunther to score Lola Meyer, making the score 4-1.

In the fourth inning, Ryleigh Lilly's RBI double extended the Hawks' lead to 5-1.

In the fifth inning, the Maroon and Grey pulled away, scoring three runs to secure the game. Richards' RBI triple and a sacrifice fly by Gunther extended the lead, and an error in left field allowed Mentzer to score. UMES added a final run in the sixth inning on an RBI single from Gunther to secure the 9-1 victory in six innings.

Richards started for the Hawks, pitching six innings while allowing six hits, one run, and recording three strikeouts.

GAME TWO
In the second game, UMES came from behind to defeat Virginia Union 11-7 after trailing 6-1 in the third inning.

The Panthers scored first with two runs in the top of the first inning. An error allowed the first run to score, followed by a sacrifice fly. Skylar Skinner got the Hawks on the board with her second home run of the day, a solo shot.
Virginia Union's most productive inning came in the third, when they scored four runs on a three-RBI double and an RBI single, giving the Panthers a 6-1 lead.

UMES responded with a six-run third inning to cut the deficit to 7-6. The rally was sparked by Amaya Nunez hitting a solo home run. Lola Meyer singled to bring in Dani Brown (who reached on an error), Clarke Calvin singled to score Araceli Manzo, and Tyla Dickerson grounded out to bring home Meyer. Paige Perkins capped the comeback with a two-RBI homer to left-center, giving the Hawks a 7-6 lead.

The Hawks added two runs in the fourth inning to extend their lead. Manzo singled up the middle and stole second, then Meyer drove her home with an RBI double. Calvin followed with another to right-center, increasing the lead to 10-6.
In the fifth inning, Skinner hit a sacrifice fly to score Gunther, giving UMES 10 runs. Virginia Union countered with a run in the sixth on an RBI triple, cutting the lead to 10-7.

UMES responded immediately, adding a run in the bottom half on Gunther's RBI double that scored Calvin, sealing the 11-7 victory.

Ryleigh Lilly started in the circle for UMES, and Dani Brown entered in relief, tossing 4.2 innings with three hits, one run, and three strikeouts.

BY THE NUMBERS 
UMES celebrated its home opener with the debut of its new softball facility, the first time Hawk softball has competed on campus since the 2022 season.

The Hawks' last double-digit run game came on Feb. 17, 2024, against Alabama A&M. Tuesday's 20 combined runs mark the first time in program history UMES has scored 20 runs across a doubleheader. The previous high came on March 4, 2020, against St. Peter's, when the Hawks scored 18 runs across two games.

The last time UMES hit three home runs in a single game was on March 24, 2013, against Howard. On Tuesday, the Hawks homered through Skylar Skinner, Paige Perkins, and Amaya Nunez.

Both Nunez and Skinner recorded their first career home runs for UMES during the doubleheader, with Skinner going deep in game one and Nunez in game two.

The last time the Hawks recorded at least 10 RBIs in a game was on March 17, 2024, against Alabama A&M.

NEXT UP 
UMES will face Monmouth and UMBC in a neutral site series on Feb. 21–22.