QUINCY, Ill. — The Parkside Rangers opened their week in dominant fashion Wednesday afternoon, sweeping Quincy with a 4-0 win in game one and a 7-0 victory in game two at Mart Heinen Softball Complex.

The story of the day was the starting pitching. Holly Lowenberg twirled a two-hit complete-game shutout in the opener, and Casey Jo Vermett followed with one of the best outings in program history in game two, firing the 18th no-hitter in Parkside softball history. Vermett became just the 11th Ranger ever to throw a no-hitter, joining teammate Ellie Curtis on the list after Curtis tossed two last season. The sophomore also struck out a career-best 14 and earned her third straight win in the circle.

GAME ONE (PARKSIDE 4, QUINCY 0):

Lowenberg set the tone early in the opener, and Parkside gave her just enough offense before adding on late in a 4-0 shutout win.

The Rangers broke through in the second inning when Reese Valha led off with a solo home run to center field, putting Parkside in front 1-0. That would be all Lowenberg needed, but Parkside continued to threaten throughout the afternoon by putting runners on base and forcing Quincy into mistakes.

Lowenberg worked around a walk in the second and allowed Quincy's first hit in the third, but the junior stayed in control from start to finish. She stranded runners in scoring position in both the third and sixth innings and finished off the shutout by retiring the final three batters in order in the seventh.

Parkside added to the lead in the fifth. Taylor Utrata opened the inning with a single, Isabel Aranda followed with a walk, and Maddie Hernandez was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Megan Medlin then lined a two-run double to left center that brought home both Utrata and Aranda and pushed the Rangers in front 3-0.

The Rangers tacked on one more in the sixth. Mia Johnson drew a leadoff walk, Ava Swain followed with a single to right and advanced to second on an error, and Utrata delivered an RBI single to left that scored Johnson and made it 4-0.

Parkside finished with eight hits in the opener and drew nine walks. Utrata and Hernandez each had two hits, while Medlin went 1-for-2 with a double, two RBI and two walks. Valha added the solo home run and a walk, Klikno doubled, and Swain and Johnson each reached and scored in key spots. Johnson also drew three walks at the top of the lineup.

Lowenberg was outstanding in the circle, allowing just two hits over seven shutout innings while walking four and striking out seven. None of Quincy's runners advanced past second base after the third inning.

Quincy managed singles from Samantha Farrell and Makala Koozer, but Lowenberg kept the Hawks off balance throughout the game and faced just 26 batters in the complete-game effort.

GAME TWO (PARKSIDE 7, QUINCY 0):

If Lowenberg was dominant in game one, Vermett was simply overpowering in game two.

The sophomore did not allow a hit across seven innings and struck out 14 of the 26 batters she faced, leading Parkside to a 7-0 win and completing the Rangers' doubleheader sweep. Vermett allowed only two walks and one hit batter, and Quincy never put a ball on the ground for an out all afternoon.

Parkside gave Vermett an early lead in the first. Johnson opened the game with a walk, moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by CICI Di Silvio, advanced to third on an outfield error and later scored on another Quincy error to make it 1-0.

That margin held until the fifth, when the Rangers broke the game open with a three-run inning. Di Silvio singled to right, Swain doubled to center and Taylor Utrata was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Reese Valha followed with an RBI single to left to score Swain, Maddie Hernandez was then hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to force in another run, and Megan Medlin lifted a sacrifice fly to center to bring home Isabel Aranda for a 4-0 lead.

Parkside added another in the sixth when Johnson doubled to left and later scored on an RBI single from Utrata, extending the advantage to 5-0.

The Rangers put the finishing touches on the win in the seventh. Hernandez worked a leadoff walk, and Medlin followed by blasting a two-run home run to center field to make it 7-0.

Meanwhile, Vermett kept piling up strikeouts. She struck out the side in the second, recorded two more in the third, fanned both Casey Fronheiser and Hannah Uhles twice, and finished the no-hitter with back-to-back strikeouts in the seventh. Her 14 strikeouts were a career high.

Parkside totaled 11 hits in game two. Johnson went 2-for-4 with a double, two runs scored and a walk. Aranda added two hits, Utrata finished with a hit, an RBI and a walk, and Medlin delivered the biggest swing of the game with her two-run homer and three RBI overall. Valha also drove in a run, while Swain doubled and scored. Klikno, Di Silvio and Kendall Woods each added a hit as well.

Vermett was in complete command from the opening pitch. Quincy's only baserunners came on a hit batter, two walks, and two Ranger miscues.

Up next for Parkside is the start of GLIAC play. The Rangers will host Grand Valley State for a doubleheader beginning at noon CT on Saturday, March 21, with the games set to be played at Franklin High School in Franklin, Wisconsin.

To keep up with the Rangers, be sure to visit parksiderangers.com/coverage.