ASHLAND, Ohio - The Saginaw Valley State University softball team split two Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) matchups at Ashland Friday (Apr. 18). The Cardinals won the opener by a score of 4-2 before dropping the nightcap by a 6-3 count.
SVSU is now 20-6 on the season and 12-3 in the conference while Ashland sits at 21-12 overall and 10-6 in the GLIAC.
Game One
The Cardinals began the game with a lead-off double from Shelby Weeks. Mackenzie Rousse plated Weeks on a sacrifice bunt after, giving SVSU a 1-0 lead.
The score would remain the same until the top of the third inning when Weeks homered to left center, scoring Stickler-Gatson, who reached after being hit by a pitch. SV led 3-0 after three innings of play.
The Cardinals added one more run in the fourth, extending their lead to 4-0 before the Eagles battled back in the bottom of the seventh. Ashland scored two runs in the inning before the Cardinals closed out for the 4-2 victory.
SVSU was led by Weeks, who had three hits and two RBIs.
Sarah Vrabel earned her ninth victory of the season after going six innings, giving up eight hits and two earned runs.
Game Two
Saginaw Valley began game two by scoring the first run of the game once again. Weeks hit her second home run of the day to give the team a 1-0 advantage. Ashland responded in the top of the second with a run of their own to knot the game at 1-1.
The Eagles took a 3-1 lead in the fifth inning and never looked back. An RBI single by Sarah Alley increased the AU lead to three runs.
An Eagle error in the bottom of the sixth scored Lindsay Hayward, who reached base on a double.
Ashland added a two-run home run in the top of the seventh that made the score 6-2.
A Hayward sacrifice fly scored Chelsea Adcock, who earned a walk to reach earlier in the inning. The Cardinals would eventually fall by a score of 6-3.
SV was led again by Weeks who hit her second home run of the day in the nightcap.
Sarah Appold suffered her first loss of the season, giving up four hits and three runs while striking out eight batters.
The Cardinals are back in action tomorrow (Apr. 19) as they finish up their Ohio road trip at Malone. First pitch is scheduled for 1:00 pm.