Softball Earns Pair of Road Wins

ALBION, MICH. -- The Defiance College softball team hit the road to Albion, Mich. and return home with a pair of victories against Albion (Mich.) College. DC won game one, 10-0, in six innings, and finished the day with a, 6-2, victory in game two.

In game one, Defiance (9-9) got things going in the first inning, as junior Kaity Kuhn (Celina) singled, followed by a pair of Yellow Jacket walks. Sophomore Jackie Hartman (Parma/Padua Franciscan) cleared the bases with a grand slam to give DC a 4-0 advantage to open the contest. DC scored two more in the third frame on a two-out, two-run single by senior Marisa Guyton, extending the lead to 6-0.

The Yellow Jackets rounded out their scoring in the sixth inning. DC garnered three consecutive hits, two of them on bunts, to open the frame. Senior Megan Warren (Mason) followed by roping a single into right center field to score Emily Denhard (Troy, Mich./Kolbe Academy) and Jess Mello (Vermilion) to make it an 8-0 Defiance advantage. One batter later, junior Haley Patty (Bradford) got another base hit to make it a 9-0 lead before a Hartman sacrifice fly rounded out the scoring, giving DC the 10-0 mercy-rule victory.

In the opener, junior Sarah Kaya (Lorain/Clearview) threw a two-hit shutout for Defiance. Kaya did not allow a walk and also struck out seven Albion (6-12) hitters in the win.

Kuhn led the way with the sticks, batting three-of-four and scoring a pair of runs. Patty also finished the contest two-of-three with a RBI and two runs scored. Hartman led the Yellow Jackets with five RBI in the game.

The second game saw the Yellow Jackets pick up right where they left off in the opener. Denhard led off with a single, advanced to second on a sacrifice and to third on a wild pitch. Warren took advantage and hit a fly ball to center field, scoring Denhard and putting DC on the booard. After the Brits tied it in the second inning, Mello took advantage of an error to score and give DC a 2-1 lead.

The score remained the same into the fifth, when freshman Brooke Gostomsky (Covington) hit a run-scoring single to right field, scoring Mello again to extend the Defiance lead to 3-1. Albion would cut the deficit to 3-2 in the fifth, when Michaela Bauer (Hicksville) blasted a solo shot in the sixth frame to make it a 4-2 Defiance lead. DC added insurance runs in the seventh on a two-run single by Hartman to give the Yellow Jackets a 6-2 game two victory.

Sophomore Jamie Kimbler (Huber Heights/Wayne) started on the hill in the nightcap, and went four innings, allowing one run while sscattering four hits en route to the victory. Freshman Sydney Zeuch (Mason/Mount Notre Dame) picked up her first save of the season, allowing a run on two hits in three innings of relief.

Warren led the way with the bats in game two, going two-of-three with a pair of RBI, while Bauer added a two-of-four game with a solo home run. Hartman chipped in with two more hits in the second contest to go along with two RBI.

Defiance hits the road again on Thursday, Mar. 30 for a non-conference doubleheader at Adrian (Mich.) College. First pitch is set for 4 p.m. in Adrian, Mich.