SIDNEY, N.Y. – The Plattsburgh State softball team's offense was clicking on all cylinders, combining for 23 runs across two games of a State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC)-opening doubleheader sweep of SUNY Oneonta on Sunday afternoon at Sidney High School, as the Cardinals won game one, 9-7, before capturing the nightcap, 14-12.
 
Junior third baseman/catcher Jackie Decker (Adams, N.Y./South Jefferson) played a key role in both games, going 8-for-9 with six RBI across the two contests.
 
Plattsburgh State rises to 10-8 overall (2-0 SUNYAC) with the wins and next takes on SUNY New Paltz tomorrow in an 11 a.m. twinbill at the Frozen Ropes Training Center in Chester, N.Y. Oneonta drops to 10-4 overall (0-2 SUNYAC) with the losses and faces SUNY Potsdam tomorrow at 11 a.m. at Onondaga Community College.
 
Game 1: Plattsburgh State 9, Oneonta 7
 
Plattsburgh State broke a 7-all tie in the top of the seventh with a pair of runs, and after a walk and a groundout to kick off the home half of the inning, junior pitcher Taylor Smith (Washingtonville, N.Y./Washingtonville) entered the game and forced the final two outs in order to seal the win.
 
In the seventh, junior designated player Amanda Tantillo (Florida, N.Y./S.S. Seward) walked before sophomore second baseman Anna Fisher (Brockport, N.Y./Brockport) moved junior Kelsey Gage (Pine Bush, N.Y./Pine Bush), who pinch ran for Tantillo, to second with a sacrifice bunt. Sophomore left fielder Amy Glashoff (Montrose, N.Y./Hendrick Hudson) singled to put runners at first and third and then advanced to second on a fielder's choice. Sophomore shortstop Kaitlyn Preiss (Cornwall, N.Y./Cornwall) drove in the go-ahead run on a sacrifice fly before Glashoff reached home on an error. While Decker singled to right field in the ensuing at-bat, the Red Dragons recorded the final out to end the inning.
 
Oneonta got on the board early and often, hopping out to a 5-0 lead in the first two innings of play. Senior shortstop Marlene Cuevas hit a two-run home run in the first, while a run scored on an error and senior left fielder Katie O'Gorman and sophomore catcher Selena Ruiz notched RBI base knocks in the second.
 
Decker fired back for Plattsburgh State in the third, plating two runs on a single to right field, before Preiss got involved with an RBI double down the left-field line in the top of the fourth. O'Gorman hit a solo home run in the bottom of the fourth to extend the lead back out to three, but the Cardinals tied the game in the fifth on a two-run single by Fisher and an RBI single by Glashoff.
 
Junior center fielder Dominique Zummo (Commack, N.Y./St. Anthony's) gave Plattsburgh State its first lead of the day in the top of the sixth on a sacrifice fly, but O'Gorman smacked her second home run of the contest in the home half of the inning to square the score at 7-all. That set the stage for Plattsburgh State's decisive showing in the top of the seventh.
 
Every starter registered a hit for Plattsburgh State in the contest, as the Cardinals rapped out 15 hits. Decker led the way with a 4-for-4 performance, driving in two runs, while Preiss went 3-for-4 with two RBI, one run scored and a double.
 
O'Gorman powered the Red Dragon attack, batting 3-for-5 with three RBI, three runs scored and two home runs.
 
Junior pitcher Katie Pitkin (Dexter, N.Y./General Brown) picked up the win in the circle for Plattsburgh State, yielding seven runs (four earned) on 10 hits and eight walks while striking out six. Smith earned the save, tossing two-thirds of an inning in the seventh. Freshman pitcher Alyssa Bluethgen was saddled with the loss in relief for Oneonta, allowing three runs (one earned) on five hits and two walks in 2 1/3 innings.
 
Game 2: Plattsburgh State 14, Oneonta 12
 
Plattsburgh State scattered 17 hits in game two and used a six-run fifth to provide enough cushion to pull out the narrow 14-12 victory.
 
Senior first baseman Hope VanBrocklin (Dexter, N.Y./General Brown) opened scoring in the second when she scored on a wild pitch, and moments later, Glashoff pushed across Fisher on a single to right field. Decker doubled the advantage three batters later with a two-run single to right, handing the Cardinals an early 4-0 lead.
 
O'Gorman went back to the long ball, blasting her third home run of the day in the bottom of the second, but this time, it came in the form of a grand slam that leveled the tally at 4-all. VanBrocklin put the Cardinals on top with a solo homer in the top of the third before junior right fielder Cori McFall and sophomore center fielder Dana DelGenio uncorked a two-run home run and a solo homer, respectively, in the home half of the inning to give Oneonta a 7-5 cushion.
 
Sophomore left fielder Jennifer Groat (Ballston Spa, N.Y./Ballston Spa) cut the gap to one with a homer to right field in the fourth before the Cardinals took over the lead in the fifth with a six-run inning. Freshman third baseman Taylor Fischer (Cottekill, N.Y./Rondout Valley) kicked off the Plattsburgh State surge in the fifth with an RBI on a squeeze bunt, and she reached first safely on an error. Glashoff and Preiss each drew bases-loaded walks before Fisher scored on a wild pitch, and Decker closed out the scoring in the inning with a two-run single to right center. When the dust settled after Decker's two-run base knock, the Cardinals had constructed a 12-7 advantage.
 
Glashoff scratched across what wound up being the winning run in the top of the sixth before Oneonta clawed back with a four-run bottom of the inning. Ruiz and Cuevas each notched RBI hits before DelGenio plated two runs on a double to center to cut the deficit to 13-11. In the seventh, Tantillo drove in a run on a groundout, while sophomore designated player Lauren Sabatino pushed across a run in the bottom of the frame for Oneonta.
 
Decker had a virtuoso performance again offensively, batting 4-for-5 with four RBI. Groat also had a four-hit game, going 4-for-5 with three runs scored, a home run and an RBI.
 
O'Gorman finished with four RBI on her grand slam to lead Oneonta, and she went 2-for-5 at the plate. Ruiz posted the Red Dragons' lone three-hit game, going 3-for-5.
 
Freshman pitcher Rhea Pitkin (Dexter, N.Y./General Brown) earned the win in the circle, yielding 11 runs (eight earned) on 13 hits and one walk while striking out three in 5 1/3 innings pitched, while Smith picked up her second save of the day, allowing one run on two hits and a walk while striking out four. Oneonta used three pitchers, with senior pitcher Amanda Graziano shouldering the loss.