TAMPA, Fla.-  Kent State was on both ends of shutouts Friday in the opening day of the USF Invitational.  The Golden Flashes (10-12) fell to Dartmouth 5-0, before blanking Colgate 6-0.

"We just had no energy in that first game,"  Head Coach Karen Linder said. "But we looked more like ourselves against Colgate."

Freshman Emma Johnson (Groveport, Ohio) tossed a seven-inning shutout against Colgate with nine strikeouts.

The Golden Flashes' offense wasted no time in their victory as sophomore Lauren Grimes (Tallmadge, Ohio) led off the game with a double down the left field line.  Sophomore Abbey Ledford (West Liberty, Ohio) drove in Grimes with a single to center.

A four-run first-inning rally continued when senior Jess Blanton (Wheelersburg, Ohio) belted a ground-rule double.  Senior Shannon Laughlin (Fairview Park, Ohio) followed with an RBI single.  Two batters later, senior Mary Holt (Providence, R.I.) smacked an RBI double to center.

"I felt like Mary's hit was a really big one," Linder said.  "Not only did it give us a nice lead (4-0), but it showed we were capable of putting a string of hits together after struggling from the plate in that first game."

The run support was more than enough for Johnson, who did not allow a walk.

"Emma did a good job staying ahead in the count," Linder said.

Kent State put together a two-run rally in the seventh, beginning with another double by Grimes.  Ledford and senior Lauren Mokler (Uniontown, Ohio) each had RBI singles.  Grimes finished 3-for--4 with two runs scored.

Blanton had two hits in each game and a double in each game.

"Her timing has been really on," Linder said.  " She's playing with a lot of confidence."
Linder also noted that Alex Marcantonio (North Canton, Ohio) made a number of good plays at shortstop in both games.

The Golden Flashes play two more games at the USF Invitational Saturday, beginning with Coastal Carolina at 9 a.m.