Fort Myers, Fla. – Rachel Kraytenberg (Londonderry, N.H.) blasted a three-run homerun to spark the Clark University offense and the Cougars opened the 2016 with a twinbill split with Elms College and Marian University on Saturday afternoon at the North Collier Sports Complex.

The Scarlet and White dropped a heartbreaker to the Blazers in the opener, falling 1-0 in eight innings before bouncing back with a 6-4 triumph in the nightcap against Marian.

In the day's first game, Sami West (Gonic, N.H.) was stellar in the circle for the Cougars, striking out seven and allowing just three hits in 7.1 innings of work.

Unfortunately for West, who wound up as the tough-luck loser, the Clark offense only recorded two hits off of Elms hurler, Raeanna Tumel – one off of her own bat and the other from Olivia Barskdale (Fort Washington, Md.).

Clark threatened to take the lead in the top of the eighth when Anjelica Gonzalez (Merrimack, N.H.) was placed on second to start the inning. West then singled putting runners on the corners with no outs. The Cougars were unable to push the go ahead run across, however, as Tumel retired the final three batters to get out of the inning.

Elms finally broke through in the bottom of the frame after Taylor Skinner was placed on second and then sacrificed to third. She came across with the game's lone run when West was unable to handle a ball put in play by Keyla Oliveras.

The Cougars responded in the nightcap after getting down 3-0 after the top of the first. Kraytenberg delivered the biggest blow, crushing a three-run homer in the bottom of the first to even the score.

Clark moved ahead on an unearned run by Kayleigh McHugh (Pepperrell, Mass.) and an RBI single from Lauren Mackey (Dublin, N.H.) in the second.

Marian pushed across an unearned run of their own in the top of the third but the Cougars tacked on another run in the fifth when Gonzalez drove home Mackey with an RBI single.

Brenna Foley (Charlton, Mass.) was effective in the circle, tossing 5.2 innings to earn the victory, while West tossed the final 1.1 frames to pick up the save.

Clark is back in action on Sunday afternoon beginning with a 1:00 p.m. start against Dominican.