Besides a few extra layers of clothing to accommodate the frigid weather, the Penn State softball team was not lacking much in its home opener last night.

The Nittany Lions (14-12) continued their undefeated record against St. Francis with two wins last night at Nittany Lion Field. Both wins came via shutouts by scores of 8-0 and 7-0.

Penn State attacked Red Flash ace Laura Caldwell early during the first game. After a single and a double, sophomore Danielle Kinley drove in the first two runs of the night with a hard double.

"I did know that Caldwell was going to be the go-to pitcher, and I'm glad we hit her immediately," Penn State coach Robin Petrini said. "It kind of started out on the right foot for us."

Sophomore pitcher Ashley Esparza kept the opponent at bay with her stellar two-hit appearance in the circle, leaving the door open for a big Penn State lead. The Lions came up to bat in the sixth inning looking for only two more runs to finish the game on a mercy rule.

Junior Holle Haines smacked a quick double into right-center field to start off the inning. Sophomore Kayce Zielinski closed out the game with a walk-off home run to give the Lions their first home win of the season.

"Kayce has been playing well for us all year," Penn State coach Robin Petrini said. "She hits the ball really well, and it didn't surprise me when she hit one out. Even though our field is bigger than most, she's got that kind of power."

The offensive burst continued in the second game with at least one Penn State run in each of the first four innings. Following Esparza's performance, junior Jenn Reynolds continued to keep the Red Flash offense scoreless, accumulating nine strikeouts in seven innings of work.

Both hurlers pitched a complete, scoreless game against a squad that has always been a tough opponent for the Lions. Although Penn State now holds a 24-0 edge over the Red Flash, the players were prepared for a hard-fought game.

"It feels good to shut them out, but we could never take St. Francis lightly," Zielinski said. "They always give us a game, and we always come into the game knowing that you cannot take them lightly."

With every aspect of its game performing well, Penn State did not have to deal with any dangerous situations last night. The Lions put both games out of reach early, a trend they hope to continue this weekend in their first Big Ten games.

"The way we came out [last night] is the way we've been playing all year," Petrini said. "We're very aggressive at the plate going after it. Our pitchers had a good outing, and that's how we want to face every opponent. We did the kind of things I would've expected us to do. We did a lot of good things, and I'm proud of the way they played."