PLYMOUTH, Wis. –
Lexi Howard (
So.-Crown Point, Ind.) hit a go-ahead two-out, two-run single in the fifth inning and the Lakeland University softball team came back for a doubleheader split with Aurora University Wednesday afternoon.
The Spartans won the first game 1-0 before the Muskies rallied for a 4-2 win in the second game between two teams among the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference leaders. The split for the day kept Lakeland (18-11-1 overall, 10-4 NACC) percentage points ahead of Aurora (19-11 overall, 11-5 NACC) in the conference standings, and in second place behind only Dominican University at the conclusion of the day.
On a day where both games were played in one hour, 20 minutes, and scoring was tough for both teams, the Muskies summoned up just enough offense in the second game, including in the fifth when they took advantage of a pair of Aurora errors to take the lead.
McKenzie Staudinger (
Jr.-Manitowoc, Wis.) hit a one-out single in the fifth and then both
Kendyll Holub (
Jr.-Sturtevant, Wis.) and
Maddie Raske (
Jr.-Tinley Park, Ill.) both reached on infield errors to load the bases. Lakeland had a similar situation the inning prior, loading the bases with no outs but getting just one run when
Sam Marchant (
Jr.-Green Bay, Wis.) was hit by a pitch to drive in the tying run, and a strikeout left the Muskies facing the possibility of coming up empty in the fifth before Howard came up and hit a ball to the left side between shortstop and third base, scoring Staudinger and Holub to make it 4-2.
Jacie Jones (
Sr.-Prairie du Sac, Wis.) entered the game in relief in the fifth and earned her first win of the season with three scoreless innings in relief allowing just one hit and one walk. The lefty received help in the fifth inning when left fielder
Abby Heitman (
Sr.-St. Francis, Wis.) tracked down a foul ball on the run just before the fence, then turned around and threw a seed to second base to get Aurora's Alyssa Gale for a double play to end the inning. Jones also worked out of a brief situation in the sixth with runners at first and second and two outs, getting Angie Delgado to pop up to second base, then set down the Spartans 1-2-3 in the seventh on three straight fly outs to Holub in right field to end the game.
Staudinger and Raske both went 2-for-3 in the second game, with Staudinger driving in Lakeland's first run in the top of the first to score
Callie Linders (
Jr.-Griffith, Ind.) and open the scoring.
Lily Pettit (
Rewey, Wis.) started the game and pitched four innings, including setting down the first 10 Aurora batters. The Spartans finished with just four hits in the second game, but three came in a four-batter stretch in the fourth inning to take the lead, including a single by Aubrey Ortiz, a double to the left field corner by Nina Richards to tie the game and a single by Delgado to make it 2-1.
The first game was a pitchers' duel the entire way, but Aurora took advantage of an error to score an unearned run in the fifth inning that was the difference. Gale led off the fifth with a soft line drive off pitcher
Natalie Ziebell (
So.-New Holstein, Wis.) that stuck to the end of her glove briefly before falling to the ground, and Gale moved to second after an errant pickoff attempt at first. Kelsey Oviatt then sacrificed Gale over to third, and Mia Malczyk hit a sacrifice fly to put the Spartans ahead.
Lakeland was held to four hits in the first game but stranded two runners in both the second and fifth innings. The Muskies had one final chance in the seventh when
Sydney Meyer (
Sr.-Crown Point, Ind.) singled with one out and Howard reached on a sacrifice fly, and with two outs Marchant came up and crushed a ball into the gap in right-center but Ortiz ranged over from right field to make a diving catch to end the game.
Ziebell pitched a complete game and allowed four hits and the single unearned run, while Aurora freshman pitcher Emma Way picked up her first collegiate shutout, allowing four hits while striking out three and walking two.
Lakeland is back on the field tomorrow to take on NACC-leading Dominican for a showdown for first place in the conference with two games starting at 3 p.m.
