UNIVERSITY CENTER - The SVSU softball team posted a home split with the Tiffin University Dragons on Sunday afternoon in both teams' regular season finale at the SVSU Softball Complex. The Cardinals claimed a 2-0 shutout victory in the opener behind a complete game shutout from Samantha Willman before dropping the nightcap by a 3-2 score in an 11-inning thriller.

Game One

The first five innings went without either team getting a run on the board and that same 0-0 count would run into the home half of the sixth inning.

Danielle Hamilton had a one out infield single to get things rolling. Meredith Rousse followed next and drilled a triple to right field to score Hamilton. Rousse would follow suit in crossing the plate after a relay throw from the outfield went errant and the Cards led 2-0.

SVSU starting pitcher Samantha Willman kept things at bay from there, closing out for the complete game shutout victory. 

Inside the Boxscore

• Both teams had three hits in the game, with Hamilton collecting two of SVSU's figure.
• Rousse had the third hit and only RBI for the Cardinals while walking once.
• Bethaney Murphey drew a pair of walks in the opener.
• Willman improved to 7-4 overall on the season, marking her fourth shutout of the 2016 campaign. She allowed just three hits and posted seven strikeouts despite walking six batters.

Game Two

Tiffin utilized four straight walks in the bottom of the third and would score a pair of runs to take a 2-0 lead.

SVSU used a Rousse solo home run that she knocked over the scoreboard to make the score 2-1 in the top of the fourth. She would knock-in Madison Burgess in the fourth to knot the score at 2-2 with a grounder.

The next five innings would go scoreless and the game would get into the 11th innings with the game in the international tiebreaker rule.

SVSU couldn't capitalize and score but the Dragons moved their runner to third on a sacrifice bunt and an error would allow their third run to cross the plate for the 3-2 victory.

Inside the Boxscore

• Rousse had three of SVSU's seven hits in the second game, notching both RBIs.
• Burgess scored the other run and had a hit as well.
• Annie Hansen (7-2) took the loss in the circle despite a solid effort in relief. She worked 7.2 innings and allowed just four hits and a single unearned run. Hansen posted two strikeouts in the game.

Up Next

Saginaw Valley (31-15, 15-11 GLIAC) wrapped up the no. 6 seed in this weekend's GLIAC Tournament, which begins Friday at the Marathon Diamonds in Findlay, Ohio. The Dragons (27-17-1, 12-10-1 GLIAC) enter as the no. 8 seed after the split. The Cardinals will face-off against no. 3 seeded Hillsdale College on Friday at a time yet to be determined.

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