ELIZABETHTOWN, Pa. - The Catholic University softball team swept a Landmark Conference doubleheader against Elizabethtown on Saturday afternoon.

Pitching and defense were the story for the Cardinals (12-10, 5-3 LC), as both starting pitchers went the distance and only allowed a single run between the two of them. Catholic did not commit an error in either game.

Catholic 2, Elizabethtown 1

The Cardinals were led by junior Katie Hurd, who was brilliant in the circle. She threw 102 pitches over 7.0 innings, allowing just one run on six hits while walking one and striking out four. 

Hurd pitched out a jam in the bottom of the seventh inning to preserve the victory. After getting the leadoff batter to ground out to second base, an infield single put the tying run on base. She then got a pop-up for the second out before Grace Hussey singled to push the tying run into scoring position and put the winning run at first. Hurd then forced Kristen Aydelotte to foul out to end the game.

Hurd only allowed one hit through the first three innings, before Elizabethtown plated its only run in fourth. A two-out double from Paige Phillips scored Jenna Davis from first base to give the Blue Jays the lead. 

However, It didn't take Catholic long to respond. Junior Sarah Spaeth led off the next half inning by hammering her second career home run over the left-center-field fence.

After a clean bottom of the fifth from Hurd, the Cardinals were able to push across what would ultimately be the winning run. Freshman Amanda Gomez led off the inning with a single before Hurd successfully advanced the runner with a sacrifice bunt. Junior Sammy Phillips was then hit by a pitch and graduate student Allie Lajeunesse singled to load the bases. Graduate student Makayla Czan came through with an infield single that scored Gomez and gave the Cardinals the 2-1 lead, permanently.

Hurd (7-5) pitched her 10th complete game in 12 starts, getting the win in the circle. She also went 1-for-3 in the batter's box with a single and the successful sacrifice bunt.

Catholic 2, Elizabethtown 0

It was more of the same in game two, this time from sophomore Justina Benvenuto.

Benvenuto scattered seven hits over 7.0 innings and did not walk a batter en route to the shutout victory. She was extremely efficient and hammered the zone, throwing 79 percent of her 76 total pitches for strikes. She struck out four.

Catholic grabbed the lead before the Blue Jays even stepped into the batter's box. Sophomore Sophia Fike led off the game with a single and was allowed to advance all the way to third base following an error by Ashley Judd in right field. Gomez snatched the opportunity, grabbing an RBI with a groundout to second base to give the Cardinals an early lead.

Catholic plated its second run in the top of the third, when Hurd hit a sacrifice fly to center field. Sophomore Hailee Weiss came across after leading off the inning with a single, advancing to second on a wild pitch and advancing to third on Gomez's single, which preceded Hurd's sacrifice fly. 

After a Blue Jay leadoff single in the fifth, Benvenuto retired the last nine batters in order to claim the victory. She moved to 5-5 on the season as Phillips (7-10) took her second loss of the day while pitching her second complete game. She threw an impressive 168 pitches over the course of the 14 innings.

Weiss was effective batting in the nine spot during game two, going 2-for-3 with two singles and scoring a run. Spaeth hit 3-for-5 with the home run, two singles, a hit by pitch, an RBI and a run scored over the course of the doubleheader. 

The Cardinals will play their final eight games of the regular season at home. The homestand will began on Saturday, April 23, when they host Landmark Conference rival Scranton in a doubleheader. First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m.