WINTER HAVEN, Fla. —  Salve Regina played arguably its best softball of the season Monday against two worthy opponents in Smith and Case Western Reserve, narrowly losing both games 7-6 and 12-7, respectively.

The Seahawks had not found tons of success leading up to a doubleheader that would prove to be their toughest opponents thus far this season— and the Seahawks didn't back down from the fight.

Seahawks 6, Pioneers 7

Game one of the doubleheader came against future NEWMAC foe Smith College, a team that came into its matchup with Salve Regina outscoring its opponents 22-0 across just two games in the young Pioneer season. After pitching two shutouts, the Pioneers found themselves up 3-0 in the bottom of the second.

Held scoreless in three of four games this season including two consecutive games, the Seahawks offense responded. Morganti Bello (Corte Madera, Cali.) delivered with an RBI-double that would get the Seahawks on the board in the third inning. In the fourth, Francesca Rubino (Burlington, Mass.) laid down a squeeze to score another for Salve, followed up by a successive bunt from Mia Bennett (Plainville, Mass.) to knot things up at 3-3.

The fifth inning added more offense for the Seahawks, as Emily Lane (Tinton Falls, N.J.) and Rubino delivered at the plate to make it 5-3 Seahawks. The Pioneers answered with three more runs to gain a one-run advantage, and Salve Regina responded again with a Bennett sacrifice fly to score Lane in the seventh and tie the game at 6-6. Serving as the home team, the Pioneers plated the game-winning run on a sac-fly to center field that would give them the edge over the Seahawks.

Spartans 12, Seahawks 7

The Seahawks would flip to the home side in the back half of the doubleheader to face No. 11 CWRU, its toughest test yet. Despite being down 9-0 in the top of the third, Salve Regina scored two runs in the bottom half of the inning and added a few more in the fourth to score their highest total across five games this season.

Junior Christina Braid (Franklin Lakes, N.J.) led the way for the Salve offense, going 2-4 at the plate with a homer and three RBIs on the afternoon.

The Seahawks (0-5) continue to improve and look ahead to a doubleheader on Tuesday, when they will battle the Blazers of Hood College and the Cardinals of Wesleyan University in Winter Haven, Florida.