ST. LOUIS, Mo. – The No. 24 Washington University in St. Louis softball team swept Grinnell on Sunday, picking up a pair of wins to improve to 6-0 on the season.
 
Game 1: WashU 12, Grinnell 5
Grinnell had a big first inning, putting up four runs. Kayla O'Malley drew a lead off walk and Gabriella Simon reached on a throwing error.  Both runners moved up a base on a wild pitch, scoring O'Malley for a 1-0 lead.
 
Lindsey Schultz singled to left center and Lexi Herrick drew a walk. Ava Araujo singled through the left side to load the bases and Elyse Pender laid down a sacrifice bunt to score Schultz. Emma Skibbie singled to right field, scoring both Herrick and Araujo for the 4-0 lead.
 
WashU scored its first run in the bottom of the first inning. First-year Julia Sullo drew a lead-off walk and went on to steal both second and third base. Sophomore Harper Nix grounded out to second and Sullo scored for a 4-1 game.
 
The Bears added another run in the bottom of the second inning. With one out, junior Kennedy Grippo singled to left field, advanced to second on the throw and moved to third on a foul out from senior Alexa Hanish. Grippo came around to score as junior Elena Locascio singled up the middle, making it a 4-2 game.
 
The Pioneers scored another run in the top of the third inning. Schultz drew a lead-off walk and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt from Herrick. Araujo drew another walk, prompting a pitching change for the Bears. Both runners advanced on a passed ball and Schultz scored on a throwing error for a 5-2 Grinnell lead.
 
In the bottom of the third, WashU pulled within one, scoring two runs. Both Nix and first-year Emmy May were hit by pitches to start the inning. Senior Sydney Schneider hit a bloop single down the right field line, loading the bases. Junior pitcher Maria Brooks singled through the left side, scoring Nix and May went on to score on a ground out from Grippo for a 5-4 game.
 
The Bears tied things up in the bottom of the fourth inning. With one out, Sullo singled to second base and went on to steal second and third bases before scoring on a throwing error to make it a 5-5 game.
 
WashU took its first lead of the game in the bottom of fifth inning. Junior Kristina Donaldson drew a lead-off walk and moved up on a sacrifice bunt from Schneider. Donaldson advanced to third on a passed ball and scored on a sacrifice fly from Brooks for a 6-5 edge.
 
The Bears had a big, six-run inning in the bottom of the sixth inning. Sophomore Kennedy Rushing drew a lead-off walk and stole second. Locascio drew a walk and Rushing reached third on a Sullo fielder's choice and went on to score on a passed ball.
 
Nix drew a walk and Sullo stole third, prompting a pitching change for Grinnell. May singled through the left side, scoring Sullo and Donaldson reached base on an error, loading the bases.
 
Schneider grounded out, scoring sophomore Christina Smith, who came on to run for Nix. Brooks singled to short, scoring both May and Donaldson. Grippo singled to center and Rushing doubled to left field, making it a 12-5 game.
 
Sullo finished 1-for-3 with three runs scored and five stolen bases, setting a new single-season steal record, which was previously four set in 2020.
 
Brooks finished 2-for-2 at the plate with three RBI and one run and Grippo was 3-for-4 with one RBI and one run scored.
 
In the circle Brooks earned the win with 4.2 innings of work, not allowing a hit and striking out eight batters.
 
Game 2: WashU 6, Grinnell 1
The Bears got on the board in the bottom of the first inning. With two outs, Donaldson doubled to right center and Nix singled up the middle, scoring Donaldson for the 1-0 lead.
 
In the bottom of the second with one out, first-year Katie Fung tripled down the right field line to get things going. First-year Allie Botkin singled to short, scoring Fung for a 2-0 lead.
 
The Bears put up another run in the bottom of the third inning. Nix drew a one-out walk and first-year Ava Peterson singled to left. Senior Jamie Cendana singled up the middle, scoring Nix.
 
Grinnell scored its lone run of the game in the top of the fourth inning. Leanna Guerra reached base on a fielder's choice and Zoe Salazar doubled to left center, scoring Guerra for a 3-1 game.
 
With two outs in the bottom of the fourth inning, Grippo singled down the left line and advanced to second on the throw. Donaldson doubled to left center, advancing to third on throw and scoring Grippo to extend the lead to 4-1.
 
The Bears scored their final two runs in the bottom of the fifth. Peterson led off with a walk and advanced on a Cendana sacrifice bunt. Smith and first-year Austen Kinney drew back-to-back walks, loading the bases for WashU.
 
First-year Olivia Lauber hit a single to third, scoring Peterson and Sullo followed with a single to right field, scoring Smith for the 6-1 lead.
 
Donaldson and Nix each went 2-for-3 with one RBI and one run scored. Cendana finished 2-for-3 and Peterson was 1-for-3 with one run scored.
 
First-year Jessi Szafoni earned the win in the circle, pitching 5.0 innings with one run and two strikeouts.
 
Next weekend, the Bears host a round robin with UW-Whitewater and Rhodes. On Saturday, March 7, WashU plays UW-Whitewater at 11 a.m. followed by Rhodes at 1 p.m. The next day, the Bears start with UW-Whitewater at 1 p.m. followed by Rhodes at 3 p.m.
 
-------

Elevating scholar-champions requires resources beyond the institutional budget. Through the W Club, generous alumni, parents, and friends provide unrestricted support that is essential to the extraordinary WashU student-athlete experience—and the ongoing growth and development of the department. Annual support for Athletics allows the Bears to consistently rise to national levels of competition and ensures that our student-athletes enjoy exceptional opportunities as they train, compete, and lead. To make a gift to the Annual Fund for Athletics, please visit our secure online giving form or contact the Athletics Advancement Office at athletics@wustl.edu