YANKTON, S.D. – The Northwestern College softball team (22-4, 1-1 GPAC) split their Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) opener with Mount Marty University (12-8, 2-2 GPAC).
Game one was a tight contest with the Lancers scoring the winning run in the top of the seventh to take the 4-3 win. Game two saw the Raiders score two runs late in the bottom of the sixth aiding their 4-3 victory.
Game 1
The Raiders broke the ice with a run in the bottom of the first inning. Madysn Grotewold (So., Larchwood, Iowa) singled and advanced to second on a Bri Giordano (Jr., Arroyo Grande, Calif.) walk. Kameryn Etherington (So., Algona, Iowa) walked to load the bases with two outs. Jordyn Kramer (Sr., Larchwood, Iowa) also worked a walk to push a run across for the 1-0 lead.
Northwestern would push another run across in the second. Chloe Gallegos (Fr., Carroll, Iowa) was hit by a pitch and advanced to second on a ground out. Grotewold would single to score Gallegos for a 2-0 lead.
The Lancers were held to one hit by the Raiders’ Etherington through the first three innings. A small two-out rally would allow Northwestern to take a 3-0 lead. A Charli Bomgaars (Fr., Boyden, Iowa) single would score Kramer, who walked earlier in the inning.
Etherington would continue to deal in the circle, only allowing two total hits through four innings.
The top of the fifth would see the Lancers offense connect. A pair of singles and a walk would load the bases with one out. A double would clear the bases and tie the game at three but Etherington would finish the inning with a strikeout to keep the game tied.
In the top of the seventh the Lancers would push another run across to take a 4-3 lead. Emily Strasser (Sr., Sioux Falls, S.D.) would single with two outs and Gallegos would follow that with a single of her own but the Raiders were unable to tie up the game.
Grotewold, Giordano, and Strasser would all notch multi-hit games with two a piece. Kramer would work an impressive three walks and steal a base. Etherington would tally eight strikeouts for the game.
Game 2
The Lancers would scratch across the first run in the top of the first inning on a passed ball. Freshman pitcher Kate Kralik (Fr., Indianola, Iowa) would strike out two in the first frame and keep the score at 1-0 in favor of Mount Marty.
Kralik would toss a one, two, three top of the second inning. With two outs Gwen Mikkelsen (Jr., Casa Grande, Ariz.) would single, she was followed by a Gallegos single and Mikkelsen advanced to third. Bomgaars tallied the third hit of the inning and scored Mikkelsen. Gallegos was thrown out trying to score to end the inning (1-1).
Jennifer Boeve (Jr., Hastings, Neb.) would single to start the bottom of the third, she would advance to second on a groundout. A Giordano RBI single would give the Raiders a 2-1 lead.
Mount Marty’s offense regained the lead, 3-2, on a two-run homer in the top of the fifth.
The Raiders would respond with two runs of their own in the bottom of the sixth. Etherington would single and a Strasser sacrifice bunt would move her to second. Kramer worked a walk to put runners on first and second. Mikkelsen would reach on a fielders choice and Kramer would be forced out at second. A Gallegos double, scoring Etherington and Mikkelsen, would prove to be the winning at-bat giving the Raiders a 4-3 lead.
The Lancers would not go away easily in the seventh. A single and stolen base would put a runner in scoring position with no outs. Kralik earned back-to-back outs with the next two batters. A walk would put runners at the corners with two away but a foul out to the catcher would end the game and give Kralik, and the Raiders, their first GPAC win of the year.
Gallegos tallied two RBIs, including the game winning RBI in the sixth. Boeve and Giordano would join Gallegos with multi-hit games. Kralik tallied six strikeouts and only allowed five hits in her complete game win.
Up Next: The Raiders will travel to Fremont, Neb. to take on the Warriors of Midland University on Saturday, March 26. The doubleheader is set to begin at 1:00 p.m. with game two to follow the completion of game one.
