HUNTINGTON, Ind. – The No. 17 Indiana Wesleyan softball team split a doubleheader at Huntington University Saturday to close out the regular season. The Wildcats lost the first game 7-6 before bouncing back to take a 5-1 victory in the nightcap. IWU finishes in second place in the Crossroads League and will be the No. 2-seed in the league tournament beginning next week.


 

THE ESSENTIALS

 

• Location: Spring Arbor, Mich.
• Records: IWU 37-11, 28-8 I HU 25-25, 17-19
• Game One Score: HU def. IWU 7-6  
• Game Two Score: IWU def. HU 5-1
• NAIA Top-25 Rankings: IWU - #17 – HU -

GAME ONE HIGHLIGHTS

 

 

• Huntington opened the scoring with a run in the first and tacked on another run in the third for a 2-0 advantage.  
• IWU got on the scoreboard in the top of the fourth. Courtney Thomas singled and moved to third on Abby Harvey's double to the gap in left center field. After a walk to Carli Merritt, Mackenzie Swango entered as a pinch hitter and lifted a sacrifice fly to right field, making it 2-1. Merritt stole second and moved to third on an error, allowing Harvey to score. Sara Ruble's single to right center pushed the score to 3-2. Morgan Yeater's single to center field allowed Ruble to score, extending the margin to 4-2.
• In the fifth, Thomas doubled to left field with one out and promptly stole third base. Harvey's single pushed Thomas home for a three-run edge.
• Tied at 5-5 in the seventh, Harvey was hit by a pitch. A. Hackett entered as a pinch runner and moved to second on Kamryn Buck's base hit. After Zoe Fountain laid down a sacrifice bunt, Chloe Tragesser's single pushed Hackett across for a 6-5 lead. However, the Foresters scored two runs in the bottom of the contest for the win.
• For the game, Harvey led the way with three hits. Thomas and Yeater registered two hits apiece. Thomas scored twice in the one-run victory.
• In the circle, Alyssa Wagner went the distance for the complete-game effort. She had a strikeout.

GAME TWO HIGHLIGHTS

 

 

• IWU led 1-0 in the top of the first inning of game two. Sadie Harding drew a walk, went to second on Brylee Bilger's single and raced home on Becca Wyatt's double to right field. 
• HU tied the contest in the bottom of the first.
• The Wildcats took the lead in the fourth. Buck reached on a miscue and moved to second on a base hit from Harvey. Tragesser laid down a sacrifice bunt. Merritt entered as a pinch runner and walked. Zoe Foutain pinch ran for her and Yeater reached on a fielder's choice that scored Buck. Harding's base knock allowed Fountain to race home for a 3-1 lead.
• Thomas was hit by a pitch to lead off the fifth. After Wyatt singled, Buck laid down a sacrifice bunt. Harvey's sacrifice fly scored Thomas prior to Tragesser's base knock plating Wyatt for the 5-1 edge. 
• For the game, Bilger, Harding, Tragesser and Wyatt had two hits apiece.
• In the circle, Alayna Thomas got the start and worked five frames. She had two strikeouts in the win. Makenna Waddell worked the sixth before Emma Etter-Cox tossed the seventh. She posted a strikeout as well.

NEXT TIME OUT

 

 

• The Wildcats return to action in the Crossroads League Tournament beginning Wednesday, May 1 at 5:00PM.
• The tournament will be hosted by Spring Arbor University.
• Live video and stats will be available at IWUWildcats.com.

FOLLOW THE WILDCATS

 

• Follow Athletics (@IWUWildcats): Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
• Follow Softball (@IndWesSoftball): Twitter | Instagram | Facebook

#