DURHAM, N.C. – The East Carolina softball team came up short against No. 11 Duke in a doubleheader on Wednesday, falling 11-5 in the first game and losing 4-3 on a walkoff in the second contest inside Duke Softball Stadium.
 
The Pirates drop to 23-19 (1-8 AAC) on the season with the two loss and Duke improves to 33-8 (10-5 ACC) with the sweep.
 
Game One: No. 11 Duke 11, East Carolina 5
The Pirates jumped out to a quick lead in the top of the first after Logan Sutton drew a walk to score Jocelyn Alonso with the bases loaded. Malea Rolle would reach on a fielder’s choice and Bailee Wilson would score off a Duke error to put ECU ahead 2-0.
 
Duke would take the lead after tallying one run in the bottom of the first and adding two more in the bottom of the third to go ahead 3-2. ECU would respond in its next at bat after a two RBI single from Wilson put the Pirates back in front 4-3. The Blue Devils would regain the momentum and put the game away with a four-run fifth and sixth inning in route to its 32nd win.
 
Taylor Edwards went 3-for-4 and tallied a home run to lead the Pirates at the plate and Wilson provided two hits in four at bats.
 
Payton Hudson (0-2) surrendered three earned runs in 3.1 innings of work for the loss while Sophie Garner-MacKinnon (4-1) only allowed two hits in 3.1 innings for the win.
 
Game Two: No. 11 Duke 4, East Carolina 3
In similar fashion to the first game, the Pirates would get the first run of the contest after Taudrea Sinnie hit a triple and then scored on a sacrifice fly from Jocelyn Alonso. Duke would even things up in the bottom of the second with back-to-back doubles and would jump ahead 2-1 in the bottom of the third on an RBI single from Gisele Tapia. 
 
After failing to get runners into scoring position for three innings, the Pirates would load the bases without recording a hit and Wilson would draw a walk to score Ragan Holloman and knot the game at 2-2. ECU would be unable to take the lead, leaving three on base after a Sutton flyout to end the inning. 
 
Duke would retake the lead in the bottom of the sixth with a double but with their back to the wall, the Pirates would respond with a sacrifice fly from Wilson to score Sinnie and even the score at 3-3. Duke’s Kairi Rodriguez would hit a ball deep to right field that looked to be going over the wall but Anna Sawyer would make a spectacular catch to rob the Blue Devils of a walkoff home run. Duke would hit a single and would score on a unearned run off a Pirate error to clinch the win and sweep the doubleheader.
 
Sinnie led ECU on offense recording three of the Pirates’ five hits in the game.
 
Jordan Hatch (8-8) gave up seven hits and four runs in 6.2 innings of work for the loss and Cassidy Curd (10-0) tossed eight strikeouts to remain perfect in the circle this season.
 
Up Next
East Carolina returns home this weekend for a conference series with Memphis beginning on Friday at 5 p.m. on ESPN+.