ABERDEEN, SD – Clutch hitting by
Francesca Villaneda and
Mckenzie Reinhardt helped lead the University of Mary softball team to their first conference victories as the Marauders swept Northern State University (9-5, 1-0) in a doubleheader.
UMary (9-31, 2-16 Northern Sun) has now surpassed their win total from last season of seven.
Hannah Chambers and
Nicole Eckhardt were dominant in the circle for the Marauders. The duo pitched a combined 10.1 innings and allowed zero runs on five hits.
GAME 1 |UMary – 9, NSU - 5
Jenel Mallari opened the scoring in the top of the first after she hit a single to right field to bring home
Ariana Retuta. The Wolves scored a run of their own in the bottom of the first inning to tie the game at 1-1.
Mallari would give the Marauders a 2-1 lead in the third inning when she reached on an error by the pitcher, scoring Retuta. NSU (20-20, 6-14 NSIC) would tie the game back up at 2-2 in the bottom of the third.
The top of the fifth inning saw UMary score three runs to take a 5-2 lead.
Sariah Perez jumpstarted the offense when she smashed a triple to right center to score
Mckenzie Reinhardt. Perez would then come around to score on a Mallari single to right. The Marauders then loaded the bases for
Jaraya Diaz, who drew a walk to score Mallari.
UMary's lead would not last as the Wolves would rally for three runs in the sixth inning. The bottom of the seventh inning saw NSU have runners on second and first with one out.
Nicole Eckhardt pitched out of the jam when she induced a ground ball to third baseman Perez, who then stepped on the bag at third and fired a throw to first to record the double play.
Emily Schommer led off the ninth inning with a double to left center field.
Francesca Villaneda then smacked a single to right field, giving the Marauders the lead. After a
Katelyn Falk single, Reinhardt would demolish a home run to left field, giving UMary a 9-5 lead.
Eckhardt pitched a clean ninth inning to secure the Marauders their first conference win of the year. Eckhardt pitched 3.1 innings of relief and did not allow a single run. She gave up one hit while striking out two batters to earn her second win of the season.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Mckenzie Reinhardt went 3-for-6 with one home run, three RBIs, and two runs scored
Jenel Mallari went 2-for-4 with three RBIs, one run scored and one walk
Francesca Villaneda went 2-for-4 with one RBI and one run scored
Sariah Perez went 2-for-4 with one triple, one RBI, and one run scored
Emily Schommer went 1-for-3 with one double, two walks and one run scored
Ariana Retuta went 2-for-5 with two runs scored
Katelyn Falk went 1-for-3 with one run scored and one walk
GAME 2 |UMary – 1, NSU - 0
Game two was a pitching duel between
Hannah Chambers and Lexi Chase, as neither team scored in the first five innings.
Francesca Villaneda delivered another huge hit in the top of the sixth inning when she smoked a ball into left field to bring home
Ariana Retuta.
Nicole Eckhardt came into pitch in the sixth and pitched two shutout innings to give the Marauders a 1-0 win and Eckhardt her first save of the season. Chambers picked up her third win of the year as she threw five innings of shutout ball, allowing only three hits.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Francesca Villaneda went 1-for-3 with one RBI
Ariana Retuta went 1-for-3 with one double and one run scored
Mckenzie Reinhardt went 2-for-3
Kelsey Mischel went 1-for-3
UP NEXT
The Marauders return home to take on Bemidji State University on Saturday, April 20, starting at noon at the UMary softball field.
#marauders#
