WASHINGTON— Saint Joseph’s got timely extra-base hits, including a pair of home runs, to defeat No. 4 Saint Louis 7-1 in game one of the 2016 Atlantic 10 Softball Championship at George Washington’s Mount Vernon Athletic Complex.

The Hawks advance in the winner’s bracket to face top-seeded Fordham Friday at noon. SLU drops into the consolation bracket and will play the loser of No. 3 UMass/No. 6 George Washington Thursday at 5:00 pm.

SJU had 11 hits in the game, two of which were home runs and four others were doubles. Sarah Yoos crushed a two-run roundtripper off the left centerfield brick wall for the first of the two homers. Yoos, who also doubled home a run in the seventh, helped lead the Hawks with a 2-for-4 day with three RBI. Cyndi Wilson also went 3-for-4 for SJU. She hit a solo shot in the sixth by for the Hawks’ other long ball. Saint Joseph’s scored two runs in the third, fifth and seventh in addition to Wilson’s score in the sixth.

Saint Louis managed a late run in the seventh on a single by right fielder Emma Buckles that scored Mackenzie Peter. Peter and Allie MacFarlane each had two hits to lead the Billikens.

The game, which had been suspended Wednesday due to steady rains, began in the bottom of the first inning with Peter on third base with one out, but the Billikens were unable to push her across. Two innings later, Saint Joseph’s scored its first two runs on an RBI double to the leftfield wall by Kaylyn Zierke that scored leadoff hitter Raelynn Genovese and Kerrie Kortmann.

Ashley Ventura (13-8) got the win for the Hawks, throwing six scoreless innings, allowing four hits while striking out six. SLU’s Brianna Lore took the loss in six innings of work, with five runs, three of them earned, on eight hits with four strikeouts.

The game was the first of the double-elimination championship, which was moved back a day after the rains that suspended the Saint Joseph’s-Saint Louis game also postponed games two and three.