Game 1
Lewis (19-11, 13-5 GLVC): 7
at Southern Indiana (22-17, 10-14 GLVC): 6
-Box Score (11 inn.): HTML | Sortable |
Game 2
Lewis: 2
at Southern Indiana: 1
-Box Score (8 inn.): HTML | Sortable |
EVANSVILLE, Ind.—The University of Southern Indiana softball team suffered a pair of heart-breaking, extra-inning losses to Great Lakes Valley Conference foe Lewis University Saturday at the USI Softball Field.
USI (22-17, 13-5 GLVC) rallied from a 6-0 deficit in game one to force extra frames, but eventually succumbed to the visiting Flyers, 7-6, in 11 innings. The Screaming Eagles rallied from one back in game two, but eventually fell, 2-1, in eight innings.
Game one had the makings of a pitcher's duel early as neither team could crack the opposing team's hurlers through the first four innings.
Lewis (19-11, 13-5 GLVC) had just one hit through four and the Eagles had just two hits through five, but in the last half of the fifth inning—Lewis was the designated home team in both contests—the Flyers broke through for six runs on the strength of a three-run double by senior Lauren Hanford and a two-run blast by sophomore Kelsey Ullrich.
In all, Lewis sent nine batters to the plate and benefitted from a bases-loaded hit batsman as it broke the game wide open.
USI, however, got on the scoreboard in the top half of the sixth inning as freshman
Janna Green led the frame off with a double before scoring on a groundout by
Brooke Harmening two batters later.
Three straight hits to lead the seventh inning off for the Eagles, including a two-run single by sophomore
Jolynn O'Haver trimmed the Flyers' cushion to 6-3. Following an error and a pair of fielder's choice groundouts, sophomore
MacKenzi Dorsam had a two-out, RBI-single to get the Eagles to within two runs.
After Dorsam, who represented the tying run, reached second on the throw, Lewis elected to walk Harmening to load the bases for junior Kesley Jankowski, who rewarded USI with a two-run single down the rightfield line to tie the contest.
USI left runners in scoring position in the 10th and 11th frames and the Flyers stranded runners at second and third in the ninth. But a two-out, single down the leftfield line by junior Jessica Rourke in the bottom of the 11th scored the game-winning run, giving Lewis the 7-6 decision in the opener.
Harmening (16-9) took the loss for the Eagles after giving up seven runs, six earned, off 10 hits and two walks. She struck out six Flyers in 10.2 innings of work.
After surrendering a run on an error in the bottom of the first inning of game two, USI bounced back with an RBI-single off the bat of freshman
Kaitlyn England in the fourth inning to tie the contest at 1-1.
USI missed a golden opportunity at its first lead of the day in the fifth inning as Green, who reached on a one-out single, was thrown out at home when she attempted to score from first base on Dorsam's one-out double. Dorsam made it to third on the throw, but the Eagles failed to push the run across as the score remained unchanged.
The Eagles had the bases loaded in the eighth inning, but could not push the go-ahead run across the plate. Lewis senior Michelle Vucsko ended the game in the last part of the eighth as she hit a one-out, walk-off home run over the left-centerfield fence.
Freshman
Sarah Owens (5-7) was charged with the loss despite a strong outing. She gave up two runs, just one earned, off five hits and four walks in 7.1 innings of work.
USI returns to action Sunday when it hosts the University of Wisconsin-Parkside in a noon doubleheader at the USI Softball Field. UW-Parkside (8-28, 5-17 GLVC) suffered a pair of GLVC losses to Kentucky Wesleyan College Saturday in Owensboro, Kentucky.
