(Courtesy of Caldwell College Sports Information)

CALDWELL, N.J. - Home runs by junior Nicole Velardi (Belleville, NJ/Belleville) and sophomore Megan Fryday (San Marcos, CA/Mission Hills) helped the Caldwell College softball team take two from Georgian Court University in a Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference doubleheader Thursday afternoon at Caldwell Field. The Cougars, who won 7-1 and 4-2, are unbeaten in their last 27 games to improve to 31-4 overall and 20-0 in conference play. The Lions are now 20-20, 12-6 CACC.

Caldwell, who received votes in the latest NFCA Division II Top 25 Poll released Wednesday, hasn't lost since a 10-6 setback to then-No. 16 Augustana College on Mar. 11 at the Rebel Spring Games in Kissimmee, Fla. The winning streak is the longest in the history of the program, and the feat marks the first time the Cougars have won their first 20 conference games to start the season.

Caldwell got off to a quick start in Game 1, scoring five times in the bottom of the first. Junior Jacklyn Bates (Waterloo, NY/Waterloo) hit a two-run single, while sophomore Briana Gaspich (Brick, NJ/Brick Memorial) and Fryday also drove in runs in the inning. Then in the third, Velardi homered over the left field fence for her first home run of the season. Freshman Brielle Reighn (Runnemeade, NJ/Triton Reg.) plated sophomore Kristen Knorr (Monroeville, NJ/Delsea) with a sacrifice fly in the fourth for a 7-0 lead.

Senior Kourtney Wilson (Islip, NY/St. Anthony) held the Lions without a hit through four innings until Meghan Sfraga led off the fifth with a single. Sfraga eventually scored on a single by Ashlynn Thompson, the Lions' third hit of the inning. But Wilson retired the final eight batters of the game to close out the victory. She allowed one run on three hits while striking out three to improve to 13-1 on the season. Knorr went 3-for-4 with a double, a triple and two runs.

In the second game, Georgian Court took a 1-0 lead on an RBI single from Senna Francesconi in the top of the fourth. Sophomore Alyssa Calderon (Fontana, CA/Etiwanda) led off the bottom of the fourth with a single, followed by a double from Gaspich and an RBI single by Velardi that tied the game at 1-1. Fryday then cleared the bases with a three-run shot to left center, her third homer of the year. The Lions scored a run in the top of the seventh and had runners on first and second with two out. But freshman Amber Padilla (Chino, CA/Pomona Catholic) induced a fly ball to left to end the game and keep the streak alive.

Padilla pitched all seven innings, allowing two runs, one earned, on five hits while fanning three and walking two to improve to 10-1. Georgian Court's run in the top of the fourth ended Padilla's string of consecutive scoreless innings at 35 1/3 innings. Calderon, Reighn and Fryday each had two hits in Game 2 for Caldwell.