Emma Nedley leads the way in Penn softball's three-game sweep of Cornell

After the dust settled, Penn softball's weekend ended with a three-game series sweep over Cornell, extending its win streak to six games.

The Quakers (17-11, 8-4 Ivy) headed to Ithaca, N.Y. for the weekend after winning their previous three games. They were able to sustain their momentum, breaking multiple season and career highs in the process.

Penn started off with a bang in game one, pulling off a 12-7 win. This marked the first Ivy series in which the team won the first contest.

In particular, it was solid power hitting that gave the Red and Blue the advantage. 

A home run from sophomore third baseman Lucy Yang plated two runs in a six-run first inning to start the game. In total, Penn would smack five extra-base hits, with two doubles from senior first baseman Hannah Gibbons.

The Quakers piled on three more in the second inning to extend the lead to 9-2 thanks to patience at the plate — the ninth run came on an RBI walk which was enough to withstand Cornell's four run fourth. 

In the second game of the series, the team saw a scoreless pitching performance from junior Jennifer Brann end early. A Yang RBI single in the top of the fifth gave the Quakers the requisite 8-0 lead for the mercy rule, ending the game a half-inning later. Brann threw a complete game, striking out five batters in five innings and allowing just three hits. 

Freshman center fielder Emma Nedley had a stellar performance during the double-header on Saturday, hitting a home run and a double in game two. She ended the day with five hits and five RBIs to her name. Nedley’s solo shot was her team-leading fifth home run of the season.

Nedley now sits in the top 10 the Ivy League in several offensive categories, including home runs and slugging percentage (.670).

The Red and Blue finished the three-game set with another five-inning game, this time a 14-0 rout of the Big Red. Nedley was again the catalyst for the Red and Blue offensively, as she notched 5 RBIs and four hits in as many at-bats. In the series, she went 9-for-12 and added nine RBIs. 

Brann pitched another complete game shutout on Sunday, her second in two days. This time she struck out three and allowed four hits. Across 10 innings — all scoreless — Brann allowed a total of seven Cornell hits, the same amount Nedley had for the Quakers on her own. 

With the help of the slugger, the Quakers are now at the top of the Ivy League with Princeton as their next competitor this weekend at Penn Park.