FLORENCE, SC – Junior right fielder Chelle Phillips registered six hits, scored five times, and drove in four runs to help lead Francis Marion University to a pair of wins at the Patriot Invitational Softball Tournament at Freedom Florence on Friday (March 12).

FMU (17-7) defeated St. Andrews Presbyterian College 10-1 in five innings and Saint Leo University 11-4.  The tournament will continue on Saturday as the Patriots take on Lenoir-Rhyne University at 1 p.m. and Alderson-Broaddus College at 3 p.m.

In the first game, junior Cea Knox (7-3) tossed a two-hitter, striking out three.  Phillips was 2-for-3 with two runs scored, while sophomore second baseman Ashley Jaramillo was 2-for-2 with three runs scored and a two-run homer.

Junior shortstop Jessica Hogan was 2-for-3 with two runs scored and two RBIs, while Olivia Ferguson and Jamie Holmes both drove in two runs.

First baseman Danyell Marquez accounted for the lone St. Andrews run with a solo home run to lead off the second inning.  Daisy Mendez (0-5) was the losing pitcher.

In the win over Saint Leo, Phillips was 4-for-4 with three runs scored, and four driven in.  Her three-run homer in the seventh inning provided insurance runs.

FMU senior third baseman Kat Beauvais was 2-for-5 with two runs scored, while Ferguson was 1-for-2 with three runs scored.

Senior southpaw Michaela Wolf (10-3) allowed only seven hits, while fanning six.  Tied at 3-3, FMU took the lead for good in the fifth on Wolf's two-run single.  The Patriots then scored three times in each of the last two innings.

Kristen Kelly was the losing pitcher.  Tiffinee Harvey and Elysha Agen both collected two hits for Saint Leo.

FMU head coach Stacey Vallee came to FMU after serving as an assistant coach at Saint Leo for four seasons.