Youngstown, OH-The Cleveland State softball team continued its hot start to Horizon League play as the Vikings swept a doubleheader and took all three games of the first league series of the season to start 3-0 in league play. After a 9-0 shutout yesterday, the Vikings followed up with a 7-4 win in the first game of the doubleheader on Friday and a 3-1 victory in game two.
 
In the first game Cleveland State got off to a great start offensively as Sophie Spellman, Brooke Albaugh and Sydney Shammo provided RBI hits to give CSU a 3-0 lead in the top of the second inning.
 
Cleveland State plated three more runs in the third as Peyton Mueller Stenz roped a single to right center field to bring home another run. Spellman then struck again, this time with a two-RBI double which made it 6-0 Vikings.
 
Spellman, Shammo and Haley West all finished with mutli-hit games and seven of the nine Cleveland State starters had at least one hit in the game. Spellman finished with three RBI.
 
Youngstown State made it interesting as the Penguin bats finally got on the scoreboard with four runs in the fifth inning. Katie McDonald was able to work out of trouble and keep Cleveland State in front. McDonald went five and two-thirds innings and earned the win.
 
Avery Robinson worked the final inning and a third to earn the save, her first of the season. Robinson retired all four batters she faced consecutively with two strikeouts. Cleveland State tacked on an insurance run in the sixth for the three-run final margin.
 
In game two Cleveland State once again got off to a fast start. The Vikings scored two runs in the top of the second on RBI hits from Spellman and Kylie Gorsuch to take an early 2-0 lead.
 
The Vikings added another run in the fifth on a Shammo RBI single and three runs proved to be enough as the pitching duo of Robinson and Melissa Holzopfel combined to allow just one earned run and one walk in seven innings, with six combined strikeouts. Holzopfel picked up the win as she logged five innings of work.
 
Cleveland State returns to action next weekend as the Vikings host IU Indy for the home-opening series at Viking Field. Game one is set for Friday, March 21 at 3:00 p.m.