GEORGETOWN, Texas – The Pacific Lutheran University softball team is headed home from Texas 5-1 after the Lutes took both ends of a doubleheader at Southwestern University on Sunday.  PLU won both gamers in its final at-bat, using a seventh-inning rally to knock off the Pirates in the opener and scored the tie-breaking run in the fifth in Game 2.   
 
Game 1
 Trailing 6-5 in the seventh, the Lute offense exploded for six runs in their final at-bat to take an 11-6 lead and eventually claim a 11-7 victory.  With one out in the inning, eight straight Lutes reached safely as the visitors put Southwestern safely behind them.  Erin McGrath, Sarah Potwin, Kennedy Kila and Mari Foster all had RBI base hits and Raynna Mekaru drew a bases added a bases loaded walk. 
 
The seventh got interesting for Emma Ware, but the sophomore hung tough.  The Pirates scored a run and had the bases loaded with two outs and the tying run at the plate, but Ware got a swinging strikeout to end the threat and pick up the win.  Ware relieved Marley Dyer in the sixth inning after Dyer allowed five runs in five innings pitched.  The Lute starter began the game strong with three scoreless innings, but gave up a tally in the fourth and four more in the fifth. 
 
The PLU lineup pounded out 14 hits in the opening game and scored a run in each of the final four innings.  Foster had four hits and scored three runs, while Collado and Wada also had a pair of safeties.  Kila and Mekaru added a pair of RBI. 
 
Game 2
Kila picked up her second victory of her freshman season and has yet to allow an earned run in 5.1 innings pitched.  Entering the game with the score tied at five, Kila retired all six batters she faced and Kassidi Dean had a RBI single in the fifth as the Lutes won in the final at-bat again in the nightcap, 6-5.   
 
Both teams put up crooked numbers in the first inning.  PLU took advantage of a Southwestern error to score a pair of unearned runs.  Mikayla Chun forced a Pirate error and drove in Mari Foster.  Potwin followed with a RBI base hit to score Kila and complete the inning. 
 
After Southwestern score three runs on starter Cassidy Conrad in the bottom of the inning, PLU scored three in the top of the third.  Chun doubled in Kila and Erin McGrath scored on a wild pitch to put the Lutes out in front.  Dean scored Arabella Perez on a sacrifice fly to left and PLU led 5-3.  Southwestern added a pair of runs to knot the score in the bottom of the inning to set the stage for Kila and Dean's heroics. 

Kila also led the way at the plate with two hits and two runs scored.  Chun knocked in a pair and McGrath scored twice. 
 
PLU will remain on the road next weekend when they head to Southern California.  The Lutes will take on Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges on Saturday, Chapman University on Sunday and California Lutheran University on Monday.