HARDEEVILLE, S.C. — An eight-day layoff did nothing to cool the University of South Carolina Beaufort softball team's bats — and especially not leadoff hitter Katie Rietkovich's. 

The junior second baseman hit three home runs — including a grand slam — and racked up seven RBIs in a doubleheader sweep, as the 21st-ranked Sand Sharks beat Edward Waters 11-0 and 6-1 on Monday at Richard Gray Sports Complex.

Rietkovich led off the bottom of the first with a home run in each game, but she saved her biggest bomb for the second inning of the nightcap, launching a grand slam over the second fence some 30 feet beyond the outfield barrier to snap a 1-1 tie. 

The leadoff shot down the left-field line in Game 1 proved to be all the support the Sand Sharks' pitching staff needed. Freshman Ashlie Layman (2-0) struck out six and allowed four hits over four scoreless innings for the win, and sophomore Kristy Cook struck out two in a perfect fifth to finish off the mercy-rule victory. 

Maddie Byrd went 2-for-3 with two runs scored and three RBIs in the opener, and Taylor Triplett was 2-for-3 with two RBIs. Freshman Missy Hughes made the start in center field and went 3-for-3 and scored three runs. 

The Tigers bounced right back in Game 2, answering Rietkovich's leadoff homer with a run in the second to tie it at 1. The grand slam doused any hope of an upset, though, and sophomore Caitlin Campbell (3-0) struck out six over four scoreless innings of relief for the win. 

The Sand Sharks (8-0) will make a road trip to Georgia this weekend, facing Truett-McConnell in a doubleheader Friday and playing a doubleheader with Emmanuel on Saturday. 

NOTES: The Sand Sharks improved to 32-2 all-time at Richard Gray Sports Complex, including a 6-0 mark this season. … USCB has outscored Edward Waters 74-1 in six all-time meetings. … Rietkovich is the second USCB player to hit two home runs in one game, joining Triplett (3/5/2011, vs. Walsh). … Rietkovich is 9-for-13 with 10 RBIs and seven runs scored in four games since moving into the leadoff spot.