HACKENSACK, N.J. – Behind a two-run home run from senior Reanna Cervantes and a quality start from senior Baylee Ports in the circle, the Fairleigh Dickinson softball team battled from behind to defeat Iona, 4-1.
 
The Knights (10-27) trailed 1-0 entering the bottom half of the fifth inning before sophomore Logan Kolehmainen reached on an error. With two outs, Cervantes then stepped up to the plate and drilled a 1-2 pitch over the right field wall for her second roundtripper of the season, putting the Knights ahead 2-1.
 
Ports, who had struck out the side in the top half of the fifth inning, then gave way to sophomore Abby England, who allowed only two hits in two innings of relief while striking out one batter to record her first save of the season.
 
FDU later added two more runs in the sixth inning, with back-to-back walks by England and freshman Riley De Laval and a sacrifice bunt by junior Summer Mendoza putting runners on second and third with one out. Two batters later, Kolehmainen looped a two-out, RBI hit to right field that drove in both England and De Laval to make it 4-1.
 
England got the first two Iona batters out in the top of the seventh before allowing a single, then induced a foul popup that first baseman Amarys Miller-Godsey caught to end the game.
 
Ports picked up her fourth win of the season, striking out nine batters while only allowing five hits in five innings pitched. With her nine punchouts, Ports moved her career total to 178, placing her in seventh on the FDU all-time strikeout list.
 
Cervantes' two-run blast was the 17th of her career, breaking a tie between her and former Knights Caitlin Bradac and Kirsten Shreve for sole possession of second on the all-time home run list. Cervantes is six home runs shy of the FDU record holder, Madelaine Wilen. The senior, however, did tie Wilen for second-most RBI in a career by a Knight (79).
 
Senior Serena Meehan and sophomore Rylie Schmeh also had hits for the Knights in the victory. Meehan also collected one of two hits for the Knights, along with senior Holly Mercier, in the second game of the doubleheader, which the Gaels (9-19) won 11-0.

With the win, FDU has reached at least 10 wins in 10 of the past 11 seasons. 

The Knights next go on the road for Northeast Conference doubleheaders at Bryant and Central Connecticut State, first playing Bryant on Saturday at noon before going to play CCSU the following day at noon.