VILLANOVA, Pa.—Senior second baseman Angela Giampolo (East Windsor, N.J.) led off the bottom of the first inning with her third home run of the season, senior starting pitcher Paige Rauch (Windsor, N.Y.) struck out more than half of the batters she faced in a two-hitter and Villanova (15-8) tallied an 8-0 shutout in five innings over Delaware State (8-11) in the first game of a doubleheader at the Villanova Softball Complex on Tuesday afternoon. Giampolo went 3-for-4 with two runs scored and three runs batted in.
 
Rauch (9-2, 2.35 ERA) won her ninth straight start and pitched her fifth shutout of the season in a dominant outing. She did not allow a base runner until a leadoff double by cleanup hitter Jaelyn Baker in the top of the fifth inning and had nine strikeouts out of the 17 batters she faced. Rauch is 9-0 with a 0.83 ERA and 82 strikeouts over 59.0 innings pitched in her last 10 appearances, including nine starts and one relief outing in which she worked a scoreless inning.
 
All the offense Rauch needed came on one swing of the bat when Giampolo homered to lead off a game for the second time this season. She lined a 1-2 pitch down the left field line for a solo home run and the Wildcats later extended the 1-0 lead with four runs in the bottom of the second inning. Junior center fielder Sydney Hayes (Douglassville, Pa.) had two hits and two runs scored while Rauch was 2-for-3 with a run and an RBI. Sophomore third baseman Chloe Smith (Sacramento, Calif.) singled and drove in two runs.
 
Sophomore catcher Ally Jones (Brielle, N.J.) reached on a dropped fly ball to start the home half of the second inning and freshman right fielder Tess Cites (Horseheads, N.Y.) followed with an RBI single up the middle for a 2-0 lead. Hayes singled and sophomore left fielder Dani Dabroski (Cedar Grove, N.J.) walked to load the bases before Giampolo grounded out to advance all three runners and drive in a second run. Rauch reached on an error which brought home the third run of the inning, then Dabroski was safe at home advancing on a throw when Rauch stole second.
 
There was nothing across against Rauch through the first four innings as she kept the door slammed shut against the Hornets lineup. The first two batters of the game went down on swinging third strikes Rauch struck out the side in the second inning and fanned two more in the third to record seven strikeouts through three perfect innings. She got through the fourth inning on a groundout, her eighth strikeout and a pop-up on the third base line.
 
Giampolo singled to lead off the bottom of the fourth inning and went first-to-third on Rauch's single through the right side, with Rauch advancing to second on the throw in to third. Smith drilled a hard shot through the left side for a two-run single which scored both runners, but Delaware State starting pitcher Maikyla Nelson (2-3, 3.00 ERA) got out of the inning on a double play and a fly to left.
 
The possibility of the eight-run rule being in play in the fifth inning – the Wildcats led 7-0 after four – gave rise to thoughts of a perfect game bid for Rauch, who had retired 12 straight when she took the mound for the fifth inning. Baker doubled to the wall in right-center field leading off the inning though, and Alaena Selden singled to right to advance pinch runner Gabriela Garcia to third. Rauch preserved the shutout with a fielder's choice back to the mound, a groundout to short and her final strikeout of the day.
 
Giampolo batted with two on and two out in the bottom of the fifth inning and lined a single to left which scored Hayes with the game-ending run.
 
Villanova won the second game of the doubleheader, 11-2, in five innings.