COLUMBIA, S.C. - On Wednesday, CIU softball continued its strong start to the 2026 season with another dominant showing at home against Paine College, extending its record to 6-0. The unbeaten mark is the best season-opening stretch in program history. CIU earned a 7-4 victory in game one after Paine battled back to tie the score midway through, then closed out the sweep with a dominant 16-0 run-rule win in game two.

Game One: CIU 7 PC 4: Lilli Petty continued an impressive start to her junior campaign with a two-RBI double to put the Rams on the board in the bottom of the first, and she came around to score on a single from Gabriella Czuczuk to lead 3-0. The Lions scratched one in the top of the third, but CIU matched this in the bottom of the frame (4-1). Paine took advantage of multiple hits in the fourth to even the score 4-4. The next inning, Czuczuk recorded her second RBI of the game with a double to left center to put CIU back in front. Back-to-back singles from Raleigh Stewart and Carmella Korte added two more runs for the Rams to hold a 7-4 advantage going into the final inning. The Lions singled to lead off the seventh, but three consecutive outs secured game one in favor of the Rams. 

Korte, Petty, and Czukczuk led the Rams with two hits, with Czuczuk leading with three RBI. Abigail Guthrie hit the first triple of the season for CIU, and Haley Whidden recorded the first win of her collegiate career. 

Game Two: CIU 16 PC 0: Game two started similarly to game one, with CIU scoring four runs off of four hits, including a two-RBI double from Caydon Thompson. The Rams quickly added to their lead and scored five more runs in the fifth with a season-high of six hits, but went down in order in the third. CIU's offense exploded in the fourth, scoring seven runs off of five hits with a couple of doubles to lead 16-0 heading into the final frame. Although Paine threatened in the top of the fifth by moving runners into scoring position, a groundout secured the run-rule victory for CIU.

Petty, Thompson, and Sophia Noreiga-Mora led the Rams with two hits. Thompson recorded three RBI, and the team totaled seven doubles. Raleigh Stewart and Emily Sampson combined for the shutout, with Stewart recording six strikeouts in 4.0 IP. 

Up Next: CIU hosts the Cola Classic this weekend, taking the field at 4:30 and 6:30 P.M. on Friday, Feb. 13th, taking on Alice Lloyd College (Ky.) and Ohio Christian University.