FAIRFIELD, Conn. – Through the first five innings of the opener, the members of the Fairfield University softball had nothing to show for their time in the batter's box. But that's why they get seven chances to make something happen and the Stags certainly did in the second half of the first game against Marist College.

              The team erased a three-run deficit by scoring twice in the sixth inning, once in the seventh inning, and one more run in the bottom of the eighth to post a 4-3 win over the Red Foxes in the first game of a doubleheader. Mikayla Rubin completed the dramatic come-from-behind victory by launching a solo homer over the left field fence to plate the deciding run.

              "It was an important win against a tough Marist team," Head Coach Julie Brzezinski said. "We just chipped away and never really gave up even though we struggled early in the game. Mikayla came up big for us in the eighth inning but we really had a lot of quality at-bats at the end of the game that put her in position to hit the game-winning home run."

              Marist right-hander Calista Phippen looked dominate in the early innings, fanning two batters in each of the first two frames. But as the game wore on, Fairfield started to make contact and gained some confidence against the pitcher. In the sixth inning, Kasey Sekula started the rally with a single which Madison Robicheau followed with a double to the left-center field gap. Sam Merino stepped up the plate and pushed a grounder through the middle of the diamond to put Fairfield back into the game at 3-2.

              Kaitlin Hoffman began the seventh inning with a double to put the tying run in scoring position but still remained there after the next two Fairfield hitters were retired. Sekula stepped up to the plate and answered with a double to left field that easily scored Hoffman with the team's third run and sent the game into extra innings.

              After the first two Stags were retired in the bottom of the eighth, Rubin ended the game with a walk-off homer that gave Lauryn Rhinehart her fourth win of the season. Rhinehart entered the game in the fourth inning in relief of starter Katie Kudlacik and shut down the Red Foxes for the final four innings. The righty allowed just four hits over her five innings of work and struck out five hitters to record the victory.

              "Lauryn did a great job by keeping Marist off balance with different speeds," Brzezinski said. "She's a good contrast to Katie so I think that worked really well for us. She is a real competitor and you saw that in the way that she came in and kept us in the game."

              In the second game, Marist scored a run in the first and second innings before adding two more in the third to grab and an early lead. Fairfield managed to stay close though with its own run in the second inning off a Hoffman home run to left field. The Stags added two more runs in the bottom of the third inning to make the score 4-3 courtesy of two wild pitches that allowed Alexa Ortman and Merino to cross home plate.

              Marist broke the game open in the fifth inning by scoring three times and closed out the afternoon with another two run in the top of the seventh inning to place the final margin at 9-3

               The two teams will return to Alumni Softball Field on Thursday afternoon when the Stags and the Red Foxes will conclude their four-game set with another doubleheader. The first pitch is set for 2 pm.