TALLADEGA, Ala.- The Ave Maria University softball team swept a doubleheader on Tuesday afternoon, taking two games from Talladega College on the road. The Gyrenes rolled to a 13-3 victory in the opener, and survived a late rally from the Tornadoes to lock down a 13-11 win in the finale.

AMU found themselves in a 3-1 hole after four innings, as the Tornadoes scored two runs in the first and another in the third. Ave Maria's lone run in the opening four frames came in the top of the second, which cut the Talladega lead in half. The run was plated with two outs, when Emma Thompson crossed the plate on an error off the bat of Mariah Melendez. 

The Gyrene offense came alive in the fifth inning, as six runs were posted to give Ave Maria a 7-3 lead. Genevieve Twigg started the inning with a double, and then scored two batters later on a Thompson single. From there, Gyrene runs were driven in by Graelyn Crawford, Kalie Romig, Dariyen Varner, Angela Cataldo, and Michella Davis. 

Ave Maria put the game away with three runs in both the sixth and seventh innings, providing the final ten-run margin. Melendez, Varner, and Cataldo drove in the runs in the sixth, while the scoring in the seventh inning was provided by Romig and Lydia White.

Brittany Blizzard earned the win in the circle for the Gyrenes, while Aylin Naranjo tossed 1.2 innings in relief. Cataldo led the AMU offense out of the three-hole, going 3-for-4 with a pair of RBIs.

In the nightcap, the Gyrenes scored 12 of their 13 runs in a two-inning span, including a nine-run third inning. In that frame, Varner blasted the first home run of her career, and followed it up with another round-tripper later in the frame. Michella Davis also added a home run in the win. 

Talladega was able to outscore the Gyrenes 9-1 in the final four and a half innings, but Ave was able to emerge with a sweep in the frigid conditions. The winning pitcher for Ave Maria was Mackenzie Frye, who earned her first career win following three solid innings of work.