MOON TOWNSHIP, Pa. (3/12/2021) -- Graduate senior Liz Murphy threw a career-high nine innings and sophomore Allison Smith's go-ahead homer in the ninth helped the University of Detroit Mercy softball team to a split in its season opener at Robert Morris.

The Titans defeated RMU 3-1 in game one, before falling, 8-0, in game two.

Senior Alyssa Lang, junior McKenna Tanguay and sophomore Jordyn Chapman each had two hits on the day with Chapman also knocking in a run.

Murphy tossed nine innings - 139 pitches - and struck out eight, one shy of her career-high, with just one walk, while scattering nine hits to pick up her 31st career win for sole possession of sixth place in school history.

The Titans and Colonials will meet tomorrow in another doubleheader with game one starting at 1:00 p.m. Both games will be on ESPN3 (originally scheduled for ESPN+).

Game One
The game was tied 1-1 in the ninth as Lang singled to lead off the inning. Junior Piper Roth then laid down a bunt to move the runner to second and sophomore pitch runner Kara Wolfbauer would move to third on a wild pitch. That brought up Smith who was ahead in the count, 1-0, when she drove the ball opposite field over the right-field wall for her first career hit and home run to give the red, white and blue a 3-1 lead.

Murphy was strong right from the start striking out the side in the first, while Lang recorded the Titans' first hit of 2021 with a single to center in the second.

In the bottom of the third, RMU had a runner on third with two outs, but Murphy struck out the next batter to end the frame. In the bottom of the fourth, RMU led off with a double, but Murphy quickly retired the next two batters until a single gave the Colonials a 1-0 lead.

RMU had a chance in the fifth to add more to the scoreboard with runners on first and third and one out, but a runner was called for leaving early and then Murphy came up with another punch out to end that rally.

The Titans would tie the game at 1-1 as freshman Maddy Heilner walked with one out and sophomore Reese Ruhlman reached on an error, putting runners on first and second. Sophomore Renee Trotman then walked to load the bases and Chapman was able to bring in a run on a ground out. 

In the seventh, the Titans had first and second with two outs, but couldn't push in another run. The same was true for Robert Morris in the eighth with two runners on, but Murphy was able to get the next hitter to fly to right.

Game Two
Robert Morris jumped on top with three runs in the first and added another in the second for a 4-0 lead.

Tanguay led off the game with an infield single and was moved to second on a bunt, but the Titans couldn't get her in. In the third, junior Maggie Hampton led off the frame with a walk and eventually made her way to third with two outs, but was left on the base paths. 

Chapman had a one-out single in the fourth, but didn't come across. RMU put up three more runs in the bottom of the inning for a 7-0 lead.

In the fifth, Tanguay picked up her second hit of the game with two outs, but did not score, while in the bottom of the inning, the Colonials were able to plate another run for the win.