ROSEMONT, Ill. - The Saginaw Valley State University sotball team opened its 2015 season at the 2015 Lewis University Flyer Dome Invitational on Friday (Feb. 20). The Lady Cardinals began this year's slate dropping a 10-1 contest to Winona State before claiming a 6-3 decision over Missouri S&T in the nightcap.
Game One | Winona State
The Warriors got out to a quick 1-0 lead, scoring a single run in the top of the 1st inning. WSU would add three runs in the top of the 3rd and put up a six spot in the 5th inning, grabbing a 10-0 lead.
The Cards would score their lone run in the bottom of the 5th inning, as back-to-back hits from DeAnna Stickler Gatson and Shelby Weeks gave the home team runners on first and second with two outs.
Mackenzie Rousse would knock-in Gatson with a single up the middle, making the score 10-1. That's where the score would stay, however, as the Warriors closed out for the five-inning victory.
SVSU had six hits in the contest, with Rousse notching two of them with an RBI.
Sarah Appold took the loss in the circle, allowing six runs in four innings of work.
Game Two | Missouri S&T
Saginaw Valley didn't waste any time in the second game, plating a pair of runs in the top of the 1st inning as the visitors.
Abby Stoner had an RBI triple that scored Shelby Weeks, who was hit by a pitch and promptly stole second base. Stoner then crossed home plate after a passed ball by the Miners to make the score 2-0.
The same connection would strike again in the top of the 3rd when Stoner drilled a ground-rule double to score Weeks, who reached on a single and was moved to second on a Rousse sacrifice bunt.
S&T cut the deficit to 3-1 after pushing a run across in the bottom of the 4th inning.
The Cardinals got that run back in the next half, though, when Rousse had a sacrifice fly that scored Stickler-Gatson from third base to make the score 4-1.
An inside-the-park homerun the next half-inning for the Miners made the score 4-3 heading into the top of the 6th inning.
The teams would go scoreless in the 6th inning and SVSU got a chance to extend the lead in the top of the 7th.
The Cards would come through in a big way, scoring two runs to make the score 6-3. The runs came on a Weeks double to score Gatson and Weeks would later score on a failed pickoff attempt at third base by the catcher.
SV closed things out in the bottom of the frame, closing-out for its first victory of the 2015 season.
Weeks was 2-for-3 in the game with three runs scored and an RBI. Stoner had two extra-base hits with two RBIs and a run scored while Evy Lobdell also had a pair of base-knocks. Gatson added a hit and scored two runs as well.
Sarah Vrabel got the win on the mound, scattering 10 hits while allowing three runs and striking-out nine batters.
Saginaw Valley is back in action Saturday (Feb. 21), as the Lady Cardinals take-on tournament host Lewis University before tangling with the University of Illinois-Springfield. Game times are set for 10:00 am and 4:30 pm eastern time.
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