Confident after their comeback, the Knights (15-7) easily handled the Hoyas 5-0 in the second game to sweep the two-game series.

Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½ has now won 10 straight games heading into conference play, which begins with a home series this weekend against Tulsa. The Knights and Golden Hurricane will play a doubleheader at 1 p.m. Saturday and a single game at noon Sunday.

Down 2-1 heading into the bottom of the sixth, Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½ rallied and scored two runs to defeat the Hoyas (8-11) 3-2. Freshman Farrah Sullivan (Waynesboro, Miss.) and senior Vanessa Perez (San Diego, Calif.) opened the inning with back-to-back singles. After an out, senior Tawny Swan (Gilbert, Ariz.) smoked a single through the right side that scored Sullivan from second. When the throw to plate went to the backstop, Perez scored from third.

Earlier in the game, Sullivan hit an RBI double in the fourth to cut the Knights’ deficit to one run. Sullivan was 3-for-6 with two RBI and a run scored in the doubleheader. She raised her season batting average to .294 and now has a team-leading 12 RBI.

Freshman Mackenzie Audas (Plant City, Fla.) struggled early, as she allowed two runs on three hits in the first inning. However, Audas settled in nicely and didn’t allow a hit or run through the next six innings en route to her seventh victory of the season. Audas is now 7-4 with a 1.58 ERA and a Conference USA-best 75 strikeouts in 80 innings.

Freshman Hayley Barrow (Miami, Fla.) made her season debut as a pinch hitter for the Black and Gold after missing the first 20 games with an injury. Barrow is the younger sister of former Knights four-year starter Hillary Barrow.

Senior Ali Schmidt (Cordova, Md.) improved to 5-1 on the season as she pitched her first career shutout. Schmidt struck out five and threw the third one-hitter of the season for the Knights. She now has a team-best 1.31 ERA in 11 appearances on the year.

Freshman Kahley Novak (Clermont, Fla.) went 2-for-3 with an RBI and two runs scored for the Knights. Novak, who began the year as the Knights’ leadoff hitter, has flourished since moving into the two spot in the lineup.

Junior Marissa Menendez (Tampa, Fla.) went 2-for-3 with two RBI. Menendez broke the game open in the fifth inning as she ripped a two-run triple down the right field line that scored Novak from third and junior Danielle Brewer (Apopka, Fla.) all the way from first. Like Sullivan, Menendez was also 3-for-6 during the doubleheader. Menendez leads the Knights with a .348 batting average.

The Knights have 18 home games remaining at the Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½ Softball Complex. Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½ fans can follow all of the action on Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½ All-Access with live video and audio. Fans can also follow on the Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½Athletics.com Gametracker as well as www.twitter.com/Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½_Softball.

 Friday, Game One – Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½ 2, Ohio State 1

Freshman Mackenzie Audas (Plant City, Fla.) earned her first-career win in her first collegiate game after only allowing one earned run on six hits in seven innings to help the Knights earn a 2-1 victory over Ohio State (0-1) in their opening game of the Dot Richardson’s National Collegiate Softball Invitational.

The young hurler was dominant from the onset as she struck out the first batter she faced and five of the first eight she retired. Audas tallied nine strikeouts total and didn’t issue a single walk in the complete game performance as she improved to 1-0 on the season.

Senior Allie Jest (Stone Mountain, Ga.) provided the game-winning RBI in the fifth inning when she dropped a one out opposite-field single into left field. This base hit scored fellow senior Tawny Swan (Gilbert, Ariz.) who was on third base after ripping a triple deep into the right-center field gap.

The Buckeyes were able to get the tying run into scoring position in the bottom of the seventh after a single and a stolen base, but Audas saved her best for last and struck out Buckeyes left fielder Megan Coletta to end the game.

Friday, Game Two – Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½ 9, Florida A&M 1 (5 innings)

Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½ used aggressive base running and timely hitting to defeat Florida A&M 9-1 in five rain-soaked innings in the second game of Friday’s double header at Dot Richardson’s National Collegiate Softball Invitational. The win gave the Knights their first 2-0 start since the 2004 season.

The Knights got five stolen bases from five different players and constantly put the Rattlers’ defense under pressure by taking extra bases at every opportunity. Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½ is a perfect 7-7 in stolen base attempts through two games this season.

The black and gold jumped on FAMU early as Brewer roped a double to left field, advanced to third on senior Natalie Land’s (Mayo, Fla.) infield single, and scored on Menendez’s fielder’s choice to first base. Freshman Farrah Sullivan (Waynesboro, Miss.) then knocked in Land from second with an RBI single up the middle for her first hit of the season. Senior Vanessa Perez (San Diego, Calif.) finished the first inning scoring with a sacrifice fly to stake the Knights to a 3-0 first inning lead.

Senior transfer Ali Schmidt (Cordova, Md.), making her first Division I collegiate start, picked up her first career win after pitching five innings and allowing just three hits and one unearned run. Schmidt attacked hitters early and cruised through the first three innings before slightly struggling with wet conditions that made gripping the ball difficult. Schmidt allowed five base runners in the final two innings, but managed to escape without allowing any additional runs.

With rain bearing down on the field and a steady drizzle ready to turn into a downpour, the Knights quickly finished off the mercy rule victory in the fifth inning as Swan blasted a double into the right-centerfield gap to score Perez from second.

Saturday, Game One – Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½ 10, Bethune-Cookman 4

Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½ slugged out 11 hits and hit three home runs as the bats surged against Bethune-Cookman. Freshman Farrah Sullivan (Waynesboro, Miss.) smashed a three-run home run in the top of the first inning and finished the game 3-4 with 3 RBI and 2 runs scored. Sullivan and the rest of the Knights carried the team to a dominant 10-4 victory over Bethune-Cookman (0-3) in their third game of the Dot Richardson’s National Collegiate Softball Invitational.

Sullivan had a tremendous weekend for the Knights as the young slugger hit .417 (5-12) and knocked in a team-leading six runs for the Knights in the four games. Sullivan is also leading the black and gold in slugging percentage as well as total bases. Perhaps most surprising, a recruited first baseman, Sullivan also made several strong defensive plays at third base, leading the Knights with nine infield assists in the weekend slate.

Junior transfer Alex Hartshorn (Tampa, Fla.) made her first start of the season and earned her first Division I victory after allowing three earned runs on four hits in four innings. Hartshorn kept the Wildcats limited on the bases by not allowing a single walk. Senior Ali Schmidt (Cordova, Md.) earned her first career save after pitching three scoreless innings in relief.

Saturday, Game Two – Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½ 6, Chattanooga 2

Freshman standout Mackenzie Audas (Plant City, Fla.) was once again dominant in her second career start as the Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½ defeated Chattanooga 6-2 in their fourth and final game of Dot Richardson’s National Collegiate Softball Invitational. The win gave the Knights their second best start in school history, topped only by their 5-0 start in 2004.

Audas pitched her second complete game of the weekend and kept the Mocs both off balance and overmatched with her mix of risers and changeups. Audas struck out 10 batters in seven innings and did not allow a walk for the second consecutive game. The righty has an incredible 19-0 strikeout to walk ratio in her two starts for the Knights.

The Black and Gold will play 30 home games at the Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½ Softball Complex, with season tickets for the 2012 season costing only $40. The Knights’ first home game is slated for Feb. 24 against Seton Hall. Tickets are available for purchase online at Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½Athletics.com and Ticketmaster.com, or by calling the Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½ Athletics Ticket Office at (407) Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½-1000.

“This was a perfect way to earn my 600th win,” Luers-Gillispie said. “I feel like we are finally playing together and playing with confidence. Even with our backs against the wall, we found ways to win and our veterans stepped up when we really needed them to.”

The win vs. the Rattlers (9-8) moved Luers-Gillispie’s record to 600-451-3 in her 18th season as a head coach, while also improving her Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½ record to 348-247-1 in her 10th season with the Knights.

Todd’s two RBI paced the Knights’ offense, while senior Abby McClain (Waterloo, Iowa) tallied a RBI triple in the fourth inning. Sophomore Marissa Menendez (Tampa, Fla.) also had a hit, scored a run and posted the game-winning RBI in the sixth.

Junior Allie Jest (Stone Mountain, Ga.) extended her hitting streak to 11 games with a single in the third inning. Senior Tawny Swan (Gilbert, Ariz.) recorded a hit and scored a pair of runs in the victory, and junior Natalie Land (Mayo, Fla.) tacked on a hit and one run scored.

In the circle, junior Lacy Dinney (Binbrook, Ont.) picked up her second win of the evening to move her record to 4-3 on the year. The hurler allowed only one run on three hits, while striking out six, in a complete-game outing.

The Black and Gold trailed early in the game after the Rattlers put a run across in the top of the first inning, but Dinney was able to regroup and held the visiting squad scoreless for the remainder of the contest.

Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½ finally got on the board in the fourth inning and tied the game when Swan led off the frame with a double to left field and came around to score on McClain’s RBI triple to left centerfield.

The Knights scored four runs and took their first lead of the contest in the bottom of the sixth inning. A single by Land was sandwiched between a pair of walks allowed to Swan and McClain to load the bases with no outs, before Menendez brought the first run in with a single to centerfield. Two more runs would come around on a two-RBI single to left field by Todd to give the Black and Gold a 5-1 advantage and seal the victory.

Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½ returns to action Tuesday when it hosts both Ball State and North Carolina in a doubleheader at the Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½ Softball Complex. The first contest will begin at 4:30 p.m., while the nightcap is slated to get underway at 7 p.m.

Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½ will face No. 6-seed UTEP in the opening round of the C-USA Championship Thursday at 9 p.m. ET at Cougar Softball Stadium.

Marissa Menendez (Tampa, Fla.) added a pair of hits and a walk in the game against UTEP, while Ashleigh Cole (Pace, Fla.) tallied a hit and two RBI.

Cole also earned the win in the circle for the Knights, allowing five runs on 11 hits, while striking out three in her 29th complete-game of the year. The hurler improved her record to a career-best 21-12.

For the third-consecutive contest, Lane scored the first run of the game. The junior led off the game with an infield single, moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Natalie Land (Mayo, Fla.) and stole third base. With Lane perched a mere one base from home, Hillary Barrow (Miami, Fla.) tallied RBI number 36 on the season with a perfectly placed blooper over the pitcher’s head to once again give Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½ an early lead.

It was Lane again who was responsible for giving the Black and Gold a four-run advantage, as she crushed a 2-2 delivery from UTEP starter Stacie Townsend off the scoreboard in right centerfield with runners on first and second in the top of the second. Mary Helen Tyler (Marianna, Fla.) reached base on a fielding error by UTEP’s first baseman to lead off the frame, before Perez put two runners on with a single up the middle of the infield to set up Lane for the three-run shot.

The Miners cut the Knights’ lead to three runs in the bottom of the frame on a solo home run from senior Ashley Ellis, but Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½ took the run back in the top of the third on a RBI single to right field off the bat of Cole.

Two more runs scored in the top of the fourth for the Black and Gold, with one coming courtesy of the one-two punch of Lane and Land. Lane reached safely on her third hit of the contest and Land knocked her around with a double to right centerfield. With two outs, three-straight walks would allow Land to touch home and score the seventh run of the contest and extend Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½’s lead to six runs.

Land finished the game with a double, a RBI, one run scored and a sacrifice hit.

UTEP’s Ellis proved to be a thorn in the Knights’ side in the contest, as she added a two-RBI single to her stat line in the bottom of the fifth to cut Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½’s lead to four.

UTEP kept chipping away at Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½’s lead after posting single runs in both the sixth and seventh innings, but Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½ was able to hang on for the win and complete the sweep.

The Â鶹ӳ»­´«Ã½ softball team is set to compete in the Conference USA Championship hosted by Houston on May 13-15. The top eight teams in league standings will participate in the single-elimination tournament, with the winning team earning C-USA’s automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.