WEST LIBERTY, W.Va. – West Liberty and Frostburg State split a pair of 2-1 decisions here Sunday in a Mountain East Conference doubleheader at the WLU Softball Complex. The Bobcats (24-15, 19-9) took the opener in an 8-inning nail-biter but the Hilltoppers (25-19-1, 15-10) held on for the narrow win in the nightcap.
    Makenzie Amend delivered another strong pitching performance to get the win in Game Two. The senior ace held FSU to one run on four hits while striking out five and not walking a batter through the first six innings. Taylor Bonnett set the side down in order in the top of the seventh to earn the save.
    Katie Beeman legged out a two-out RBI bunt single in the bottom of the first to give Amend the early lead. Amend helped herself at the plate with an RBI single in the bottom of the fourth to account for WLU's other run.
    The first game was a classic pitchers' duel between a pair of lefties in WLU's Annie Paterson and FSU's Sydney Theobald.
    A single followed by back-to-back errors gave West Liberty an unearned run in the bottom of the first. Paterson carried that 1-0 lead into the fifth inning when Frostburg's leadoff batter reached on an infield error and scored the tying run on Brianna Powell's RBI single.
    Theobald and Paterson matched zeros into the eighth when the visitors broke through for the game-winner. Paterson retired the first two batters but Jayla Hill singled up the middle to keep the inning alive. Ava Gnibus blooped a single just over the second base bag and an outfield error allowed the speedy Hill to score all the way from first.
    Theobald retired the Hilltoppers in order in the bottom of the eighth to seal the complete-game win. She finished with six strikeouts and one walk while scattering five singles. Paterson was nearly as sharp, striking out four and walking two while surrendering six singles. Neither pitcher allowed an earned run.
    Grace Swigart had two of West Liberty's five hits while Gnibus and Hill had two each for Frostburg.
    West Liberty closes out the regular season with six games this week. The Hilltoppers make the short trip to Wheeling on Wednesday for a 3 p.m. doubleheader against the Cardinals before playing back-to-back twinbills at Alderson Broaddus and Notre Dame (Ohio) on Friday and Saturday.
  Frostburg State                     000 010 01 - 2  6  2
West Liberty                          100 000 00 - 1  5  2
     FSU: Theobald wp (6SO, 1W) and Ernst. Gnibus 2S; Hill 2S; Powell S, rbi
     WLU: Paterson lp (4SO, 2W) and M.Blair. Swigart 2S
  Frostburg State                     000 001 0 - 1  4  1
West Liberty                          100 100 0 - 2  4  0
     FSU: Roberts lp (1SO, 4W), Chapple (5) (1SO, 0W) and Ernst. Gilford 2S; Roberts S, rbi
     WLU: Amend wp (5SO, 0W), Bonnett (7) (2SO, 0W) and M.Blair. Beeman S, rbi; Amend S, rbi