The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater softball team split a pair of games Tuesday in Clermont. The Warhawks bounced back from a tough 2-1 eight-inning loss to Hope College with a 6-1 win over Trinity (CT).
The defenses held the opposing hitters at bay until Hope College broke through in the top of the fourth. A one-out walk followed by a double to left center broke the stalemate.
UW-Whitewater responded in the bottom of the fifth as
Delaney Becker (Tinley Park, Ill./Lincoln-Way East) led off with a single to right field. A fielder's choice had Bella Lapacek coming in to run at first with one out.
Grace Wickman (Wausaukee, Wis./Peshtigo) stepped to the plate and tagged a rope to left center with Lapacek coming all the way around to score to tie the game 1-1.
The final two innings continued to the pitcher's duel with neither team advancing a base runner further than second in the sixth or seventh.
Playing the international tiebreaker rule, Hope started the top of the eighth with a runner on second. They moved up 60 feet on a sacrifice. The runner was up the line quickly on the next batter's bunt for a perfectly executed squeeze play, leaving Warhawk first baseman
Taylor Koehler (Wauconda, Ill./Wauconda) no play at the plate. She turned and threw to Becker covering first for out number two. A groundout head the Warhawks headed back to the plate.
Also, starting with a runner on second, UWW had a runner just 60 feet away on a one-out single to left field from
Auburn Roberson (South Elgin, Ill./St. Charles North). Roberson trotted to second with a stolen base to put two on with one out but the Warhawks were unable to push in the tying run.
Maddy Anderson (Waukesha, Wis./North) suffered the loss in the circle to move to 1-1 on the season. She struck out 12 while scattering five hits across the complete game in the circle allowing one earned run.
The Warhawks bounced back putting up a four-spot in the top of the first against Trinity.
Kiarra Kostroski (Fort Atkinson, Wis./Fort Atkinson) opened the scoring with a two-RBI double to right center. A wild pitch brought in the third run and Becker followed with a RBI single to left field to make it 4-0.
Ally Dietz (Lake Villa, Ill./Lakes Community) singled in one more in the top of the second to make it 5-0 after two innings.
Trinity got on the board with a single run in the bottom of the fourth before UWW closed out the scoring on a unique play. With runners on the corners and two outs, a called strike three was dropped by the catcher. Dietz was heads up in the box, taking off to first as both runners also took off. Wickman crossed home as the play went down in the books as a strikeout and passed ball to give UWW a 6-1 advantage.
The Warhawks blasted ten hits in the contest bolstered by a 3-4 performance from
Maggie Ward (Downers Grove, Ill./North).
Rhiann Dick (Palatine, Ill./Palatine) registered her second win of the season in the circle. In four innings of work, Dick allowed just three hits while striking out one without issuing a walk.
