MELBOURNE, Fla. – Cornell's softball team bounced back from its first defeat of the season with a 20-1 five-inning thumping of Fitchburg State in Tuesday's spring break finale in the Sunshine State.
 
The Rams were edged, 1-0, by Lakeland in Tuesday's first game.
 
Cornell returns home from an impressive five-day Florida swing with a 7-1 record. Four of the team's wins ended via the mercy rule in five innings.
 
The Rams showcased a potent lineup that batted .425 with 33 extra-base hits in eight games. The pitching staff compiled a 1.00 earned run average.
 
Cornell accumulated 21 hits – seven for extra bases – in the blowout against Fitchburg State. Linnea Drever and Corrin Kennedy blasted home runs in a four-run second inning as the Rams took early control. It was Kennedy's third long ball on the trip.  
 
Elise Oleson went 3-for-4 with three doubles and three RBIs. Kennedy also doubled and drove in four.
 
Monet Roelle and Brooke Furman tallied three hits apiece. Furman added four runs and three RBIs from the No. 9 slot in the lineup. Alexa Corona, Peyton Souhrada, Kennedy and Drever all had multi-hit games.
 
Junior transfer Lauren Summers moved her pitching record to 2-0, allowing one run and two hits in four innings. She fanned five.
 
In Tuesday's opener, Cornell fell victim to an unearned run in the top of the sixth which was the difference in the tight loss to Lakeland. The Rams left seven runners on base, five in scoring position.
 
The Rams were limited to five hits, including a pair of doubles from Souhrada. Drever also had two hits.
 
Starting pitcher Daelynn Rhoades tossed four scoreless innings of three-hit ball. Lexi Ellermeier (3-1) allowed the one unearned run and struck out four in relief.
 
Coming up – The Rams return to Mount Vernon for a home-opening doubleheader against Eureka March 21 at Van Metre Family Softball Field. First pitch is 1 p.m.