INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – Indiana Wesleyan Softball took on No. 7 Marian University in Indianapolis on Tuesday afternoon going 1-1 on the day. Game 1 was a closely contested battle and went past 7 innings, the first time going into extra innings for both teams this year. Marian was able to pull out the comeback winning 3-2 in walk-off fashion. IWU came back strong to win game 2 in 5 innings, 9-1.
IWU pitcher
Isabelle Beidelschies and Marian's starter each began the game with a 1-2-3 first inning and kept 0's on the scoreboard for the first 3 innings of work. The Wildcats broke the tie in the 4th inning when
Malayni Clemens singled to bring
Courtney Thomas home. Marian answered immediately with a run in the bottom of the 4th to re-tie the game. Both pitchers stayed strong and prevented anymore runs from scoring in regulation. For the first time this season, IWU went to extra innings with their opponent.
Brylee Bilger tried to give IWU the win by sending a ball over the left field fence, taking the 2-1 lead. However, the Knights stormed back to score 2 runs in the bottom of the 8th to win 3-2.
The Wildcats came back strong scoring 9 runs for the 13th time this season. It started with 1 run in the top of the 1st when
Brylee Bilger hit a double to left field that brought home
Morgan Yeater. IWU picked up another run in the 3rd as Yeater scored from a single by
Maddie Martin. The 4th inning saw 5 runs added to IWU's advantage as
Morgan Yeater,
Maddie Martin,
Courtney Thomas, and
Leah May all recorded RBIs in the inning. The Wildcats added 2 more insurance runs in the top of the 5th to push the lead to 9-0. Marian fought back to score 1 run but was unable to score another to break the run rule.
THE ESSENTIALS
- Location: Indianapolis, Indiana / MU Softball Diamond
- Records: IWU 15-7 (8-2) I MU 18-3 (10-2)
- Game One Score: MU def. IWU 3-2
- Game Two Score: IWU def. MU 9-1
GAME 1 HIGHLIGHTS
- Both pitchers started with 1-2-3 first innings and kept it scoreless for the first 3 innings.
- In the top of the 4th, Malayni Clemens singled down the right field line to bring home the first run of the game for either side.
- Marian would match the Wildcats with a run in the bottom of the 4th to tie the game once again.
- Innings 5, 6, and 7 did not see any runners cross home plate and the two teams went to extra innings, the first time this year for either team.
- Brylee Bilger gave IWU hope with a solo home run to left field in the top of the 8th to lead 2-1. With that RBI, Bilger now sits alone in 3rd place for career RBIs at Indiana Wesleyan!
- MU found their stride, scoring 2 and won in walk-off fashion in the bottom of the 8th to take game 1.
GAME 2 HIGHLIGHTS
- IWU scored first again courtesy of a Brylee Bilger double that scored Morgan Yeater in the 1st inning.
- Maddie Martin extended the lead to 2-0 in the 3rd inning with a single that brought Yeater home for the second time.
- The 4th inning is where IWU broke it open. Yeater continued her strong game with a bases loaded single to bring Sara Ruble home from third base. In the next at-bat, Martin hit a 2 RBI single, making it 5-0. Courtney Thomas was the next Wildcat to earn an RBI, singling to bring home Yeater for her third run of the ballgame. The final run of the inning came on an error by Marian that allowed Martin to advance home.
- The Wildcats scored 2 more runs in the 5th inning to push the lead to 9-0. The first came in wild fashion as Whitney Waddell bunted to reach first base and advance the runner but an error from MU gave Danica Fuller the chance to go from first base all the way home and Waddell made it to third base. Morgan Yeater singled in the following at-bat to score Waddell for the final run for IWU.
- Marian made an attempt to get back in the game but only scored 1 and Indiana Wesleyan beat the No. 7 team in the country in 5 innings.
KEY WILDCATS
KOOISTRA PERSPECTIVE
- "What a fun night of softball! Obviously did not get the outcome we wanted game one but it was a hard fought battle from both teams and in the end they just had a bit more timely hitting than we did," said Head Coach Kelsey Kooistra. "But the girls responded well and were ready to go from the beginning of game two. Avery, Tharpe, and Brylee worked so well together keeping hitters off balance and our defense was just fun to watch. The hitting was contagious once it got going with Yeater, Mar, and Dan leading the charge. Such a joy to watch these ladies compete!"
NEXT TIME OUT
- The Wildcats play a rescheduled doubleheader against Taylor on Friday, March 27th starting at 3:00 PM.
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