AVE MARIA, Fla.- The Ave Maria University softball team led in both games of Wednesday's doubleheader, but fell twice to the Keiser University Seahawks, 8-7 and 2-1, at the AMU Softball Field. The Gyrenes led 7-1 in the opener after five innings and had a 1-0 lead after six in the nightcap, but could not hold off rallies from the Seahawks.

A two-out rally helped the Gyrenes jump out to a 3-0 lead in the opener. With Kalie Romig on second with two outs, Morgan Grimm singled to center field to drive in Romig. A double from Emma Thompson then put runners on second and third, and Aylin Naranjo drove both runners in with a single to right center field.

Keiser got a run back in the top of the second against AMU starter Mackenzie Frye. Larissa Ostrander drew a one-out walk, and came around to score on a double from Janelle Dominguez.  Frye kept the Seahawks at bay, getting the final hitter of the inning to flyout to strand Dominguez on third base.

Ave Maria's lead increased to 5-1 in the bottom of the third, which started when Angela Cataldo drew a nine-pitch walk. Cataldo moved to third base on a single from Davis, who advanced to second on the third. Grimm drove in her second run of the day on a sacrifice fly, and Naranjo recorded her third RBI with a sacrifice fly of her own, which scored pinch runner Sydney Rogowski.

AMU's final runs were added in the bottom of the fourth, which extended the Gyrenes' lead to 7-1. The Gyrenes loaded the bases on singles from Paxton Hoop, Dariyen Varner, and Romig. A fielder's choice off the bat of Cataldo allowed Hoop to score, and Romig plated the final run when the Seahawks tried to pick off Cataldo at second base.

The Seahawks' comeback started in the top of the fifth inning, as Avery Miller drove in Lexi Northway with a single. Then, in the sixth inning, the Seahawks climbed within three runs on RBI singles from Northway and Test. Cheyenne Blumberg then tied the game at seven on a bases-clearing triple, and scored what proved to be the game-winning run on a single by Ostrander.

In the second game of the doubleheader, the Gyrenes grabbed a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second. With two outs, Graelyn Crawford singled to center, and was replaced by Brooke Pierron at first. Pierron then moved to second on a wild pitch and third on a Davis single. With runners on the corners, Davis allowed herself to be caught in a rundown, which proved to be enough of a distraction for Pierron to score from third.

A stellar effort in the circle from Pierron, who did not allow a run in her first six innings of work, kept the 1-0 lead intact until the top of the seventh. Keiser tied the game on an RBI single from Dominguez, and scored the go-ahead run on a sacrifice fly by Ally Thompson.

The Gyrenes return to the field on Saturday for a doubleheader in Lakeland against Southeastern University. First pitch against the Fire is scheduled for noon.