CLEARWATER, Fla. – Lafayette opened play at the University of South Florida Softball Series on Friday, dropping an 11-2 final to Purdue in the early afternoon and a 7-2 decision to Monmouth in the evening game.
 
In the first game of the day, Purdue (19-8) broke open a two-run contest with seven runs in the fourth inning for an 11-2 final.
 
The Leopards grabbed a lead in the first inning. Paige Grover drew a lead-off walk and later scored when Erin Scott singled a 3-1 pitch the other way for the 1-0 lead.
 
Purdue got its bats going in the bottom of the third inning, scoring four runs on four hits. Jenny Behan (3-for-3 5 RBI) drove in two with a home run to center field as Purdue led 4-1.
 
In the fourth, Lafayette cut Purdue's lead to 4-2. Scott came through with another big hit, a one-out double. The Leopards' first extra-base hit of the game set the stage for Malori Pojar who plated Scott (2-for-3) with an eight-pitch at bat that resulted in an RBI single and a Purdue pitching change. The mini rally ended via strikeout with runners at the corners.
 
In the bottom of the inning, things escalated quickly with Purdue scoring seven runs to pull away. Behan's second home run of the game was a three-run shot as Purdue finished off an 11-2 victory in five innings.
 
Kinzi Van Wyk (2-7) had the decision for the Leopards, allowing four runs on six hits with two walks. Maddie Damon (1-0) struck out two of the three batters she faced in garnering the win.
 
In game two, the Leopards again managed to get on the scoreboard early, plating a pair of runs in the top of the first. Lafayette manufactured its first run. Grover led off with a base on balls and Erica Hanson sacrificed her to scoring position. From there, Brooke Wensel doubled her home and later scored in the inning on a fielder's choice for the early advantage.
 
Monmouth (9-7) answered with a run of its own in the first and one more in the second to knot the game at 2-2. The Hawks took the lead for good in the bottom of the fifth on a Lindsey Baron solo home run and then added three insurance runs on four hits in the sixth.
 
In the other dugout, the Leopards could not recapture their first-inning output, held to just two baserunners (a Scott walk in the third inning and a Wensel single in the sixth) by Monmouth starter Lilly Robles over the final six innings.
 
Stacy Gordon (0-4) was the Leopards' pitcher of record, allowing seven runs on eight hits with three strikeouts and four walks.  
 
Lafayette (2-12) continues on its Florida swing on Saturday, playing Brown and Columbia back-to-back beginning at 9 a.m.