HOUGHTON, NY—The Houghton Highlanders rallied behind a pair of solid pitching performances and some timely offense to take both ends of Tuesday's doubleheader against the Alfred State Pioneers, 7-2 and 3-2.
 
Game 1: Taylor Sile (Hilton, NY, Hilton ) pitched a complete game, allowing only two runs on five hits and one walk.  She also went 2-for-4 at the plate with a double, a run scored and an RBI.
 
Houghton produced all the runs they would need in the first inning, plating four runners. 
 
The Highlanders scored another run in the second on Sile's double, and another in the third on an error.
 
In the top of the fifth the Pioneers cracked the scoreboard with back-to-back doubles, but the Highlanders answered with another run in the bottom half of the inning.
 
Houghton's Taylor Sile (Hilton, NY, Hilton) went 2-for-3 with a double, a run scored and two RBI.
 
Game 2: The Pioneers rebounded quickly from their game one defeat, scoring two runs in the first inning on an error by the Houghton right fielder. 
 
Houghton rallied to push one run across in the bottom half of the inning after three consecutive singles and a fielder's choice cut the score to 2-1.  The Highlanders, however, would leave the bases loaded still down a run. 
 
Alfred State's Tonia Tinker would settle in after the first, putting up a pair of zeros over the next two innings.  Houghton's Nicole Fata (Archbald, PA, Valley View) would answer out-for-out.
 
Fata finished her night for the Highlanders after the fourth inning, allowing only two unearned runs on four hits.  She did not allow a walk and struck out four Pioneer batters in her first win of the season.
 
With two outs and runners on first and second in the fourth inning, Bailey Shattell (Syracuse, NY, Faith Heritage) placed a double down the right field line, scoring Tanya Hatton (Greene, NY , Afton) with the tying run.  Kaylee Jentsch (Orchard Park, NY, Orchard Park) then drove home Katelyn Cook (Clifton Park, NY , Shenendehowa ) with a hard line drive through the left side but Alfred State's Amanda Rockefeller cut down Shattell at the plate with a bullet throw from left field to the catcher.
 
With the Highlanders now in the lead, Houghton went to Jentsch out of the bullpen. 
 
Over the final three innings Jentsch silenced the Pioneer bats, allowing only two hits and zero walks while striking out four to earn her first save of the season.
 
Hatton and Ashley Schenk (Victoria, BC, Pacific Christian) each went 3-for-3 at the plate for the Highlanders and Jentsch added two hits of her own.
 
Houghton concludes their regular season this Saturday when they travel to Rochester to take on the Nazareth College Golden Flyers in a doubleheader starting at 1:00 p.m.