FORT WAYNE, Ind. – The University of Saint Francis Cougars (3-1) traveled to Palos Heights, Illinois Wednesday morning for a road doubleheader against the Trinity Christian College Trolls (1-3) and split the doubleheader winning the opener 8-4 before dropping the finale 7-6.

After a couple wins against the Indiana Tech Warriors on Sunday, the Cougars picked up where they left off against the Trolls. In the opener, center fielder Grace Renbarger led off the game with a double, and the next batter, designated player Regan Peppler smashed a two-run home run to give Saint Francis an early 2-0 lead.

On the mound for the Cougars was junior Mackenzie Rust, fresh off winning Conference Pitcher of the Week. She retired the side in order the first two innings, and her teammates gave her another run in the top of the third on an RBI-groundout.

Then in the fourth they added to their lead. Shortstop Abby Erwin led off the frame with a solo home run and it sparked the Cougars to a five-run inning capitalizing on five hits and a fielding error by the Trolls.

Saint Francis now led 8-0 halfway through the game. The Trolls finally scratched across a run against Rust in the bottom of the fourth on a two-out RBI-single, but the junior stud held them at bay from there for the next two innings.

In the bottom of the sixth, the Trolls got two more runs back to close the deficit to withing five runs.

Then heading to the bottom of the seventh, consecutive doubles pulled the Trolls to within four, but that's all they would get as Rust closed them out for her second straight complete-game victory as Saint Francis won 8-4.

Rust earned the win allowing four runs on six hits through seven innings (three earned) while striking out five batters. At the plate, first baseman Taylor Horsley went 3-for-4, Abby Erwin went 2-for-3 with a home run, and Regan Peppler went 2-for-4 with three RBI's.

In the first inning of the finale, the Cougars put their first two batters on, but Renbarger was thrown out at the plate and Saint Francis went scoreless through the first two innings.

Then in the bottom of the second, the Trolls took their first lead of the day with a leadoff double and single to start the frame. But they didn't stop there as Trinity scored four runs on three hits and an error by the Cougars to jump out to a 4-0 lead.

But int the top of the fourth, the Cougars' bats came to life. Catcher Tori Miller sparked the team with a single and then second baseman Anna Smith scored the first two runs for Saint Francis with a double. Later in the inning with two outs, an RBI-single by Regan Peppler tied the game at four.

Abby Erwin led off the inning and scored the tying run on catcher Carly Turner's single, and then they took the lead on an RBI-groundout by first baseman Taylor Turner to erase the four-run deficit and pull ahead 6-5.

However, a leadoff walk and a fielding error by the Cougars in the bottom of the fifth tied the score back up, and it stayed tied through the seventh. Then, a leadoff single moved for the Trolls set the table, and they cashed in scoring the winning run on a wild pitch as the Cougars suffered their first loss of the season.

During the finale, four Cougars had multi-hit games: Regan Peppler, Abby Erwin, Anna Smith, and Brooklyn McCord. Freshman Mia Werner suffered the loss allowing three runs (two earned) in three and a thirds innings pitched.

The Cougars will now have a couple weeks off before they resume play. They will travel to Kissimmee, Florida for the Spring Games and begin their first game on Thursday, March 10 against Cornerstone University. Stay updated with Cougars softball at Saintfranciscougars.com.