ASHLAND, Ohio – Perfection is as perfection does. AU pitcher Emlyn Knerem (Brunswick, Ohio) was as perfect as any pitcher can be in Friday's (March 11) 10-0 win over Edinboro.
And that was her second perfect game of the day. She threw five-inning gem against Wheeling Jesuit in the Eagles' first game of the day, an 8-0 win. Both games were shortened by the softball run rule.
The junior struck out all 15 batters she faced against the Fighting Scots. Knerem set down 10 batters swinging and five looking. She now has four no-hitters and three perfect games in her career, but never had she struck out every batter she faced. The 15 strikeouts matched a career high set in her freshman season in a one-hit shutout against Tiffin.
This is the second time in her career she has tossed back-to-back no-hitters, though never on the same day. She tossed two in a row late last season against Lake Superior State and Lake Erie. Knerem struck out 12 in her five-inning perfect game against the Storm.
The AU offense gave Knerem plenty of support against the Fighting Scots, scoring twice in the third inning to kick the lineup into gear. Freshman backstop Kourtney Yarnall (Canton, Ohio/Perry) knocked in a pair of runs on a double in the inning to give AU the 2-0 lead.
The Eagles picked up six runs in the fourth inning. Senior outfielder Erica Miller (Indianapolis, Ind./Franklin Central) drove in two runs on a single. Junior Brianna Woody (Cleveland, Ohio/Magnificat) had an RBI single and junior Alyssa Kelley (Mentor, Ohio) drove in two on a run-scoring single. Senior Logan Hursey (Zanesville, Ohio/John Glenn) also had an RBI in the inning.
The Eagles finished the scoring in the fifth inning with a pair of runs on a single by Miller.
Woody was 3-for-3 in the game while Miller had two hits, drove in three and scored twice. Brittany Mackey took the loss for the Scots (5-5).
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