UNIVERSITY CENTER -- The Cardinal Softball team battled for a home sweep over the Ferris State University Bulldogs on Saturday (Mar. 31) at the SVSU Softball Complex. Saginaw Valley held on for a tight 7-6 victory in the opener before pulling away from a tie in the nightcap to secure an 8-4 win in a game that was called and made final after five innings of play.
SVSU improves to 16-12 overall and 7-3 in the GLIAC after posting its second sweep of the week, as the other came on Thursday at Northwood.
Game 1
SV opened the game's scoring with three in the 1st inning, using a Meredith Rousse two-RBI double that plated Lauren Bachert and Danielle Hamilton. The third run came when an Evy Lobdell RBI single pushed Rousse across.
The score moved to 4-0 in the home half of the 2nd when Bachert blasted a solo home run to center field.
The Bulldogs responded with a trio of runs in the top of the 3rd, but SVSU would use an Aubree Mouthaan solo shot in the bottom of the frame to put the score at 5-3.
Two runs for Ferris State in the 5th would knot the score at 5-5 and that would be nullified in the bottom of the inning when Lobdell scored Rousse after she doubled and was moved to third, giving the home team a 6-5 edge.
Another run would come the Cardinals' way in the 6th as Becky Corbett added a solo long ball of her own, making the count 7-5 heading into the 7th.
That's where the visitors would make things interesting, as FSU scored a run and had a runner at third for the potential tying run before Kasey Bagelmann came in and sewed the game shut for a 7-6 Cardinal victory.
Bachert went 3-3 with a home run, double, walk RBI and run to lead the offense. Rousse was 2-4 with a pair of doubles, two RBI and two runs. Lobdell was 1-3 with two RBI while Corbett and Mouthaan had the solo home runs for the Cards, with Corbett adding a steal.
Elayne Young (1-1) picked-up the win in relief, working 3.2 innings. She allowed just one earned run on five hits with a strikeout. Bagelmann registered her second save of the season.
Game 2
The second contest began with a Bachert double and she was brought home by a Rousse sac fly after being moved to third by a Danielle Hamilton groundout. That made the game 1-0.
Mouthaan would strike for SVSU in the home half of the 3rd, hitting her second home run of the day to make the lead 3-0. She plated Alexis Cerven, who ran for Courtney Reeves after she singled.
Ferris State struck in the 4th, however, scoring four runs to take a 4-3 lead over the home team.
It would not last long though as the Cardinals got a run from Corbett after a Maddy Burgess bunt single and throwing error. Burgess would then come around later after a sac fly from Hamilton. Rousse later hit a RBI double that snuck over third base and scored Bachert for the third run. The fourth run that made the count 7-4 was a Reeves RBI single that pushed Rousse across.
After SV held the Bulldogs scoreless in the 5th, Blasia Moyler had her first career hit with a solo home run in the bottom of the inning to make the game's score 8-4. Saginaw Valley would load the bases but the game would be called due to bad weather and that 8-4 score stood as the gme's final.
Bachert was 2-3 with a double and two runs while Reeves went 2-2 with a walk and RBI. Rousse had two RBI with a double and run scored. Mouthaan had a home run, two RBI and a run scored. Corbett was 2-3 in the nightcap with a double and run. Moyler had the solo shot while Burgess was 1-1 with a walk. Julia Salisbury added a pinch-hit single as well.
Young (2-1) got her second win of the day being the pitcher of record when she threw her 1/3 of an inning. Anna Conard returned to the game after getting the start, picking up the save. She totaled 4.2 innings pitched in the contest, allowing three earned runs while allowing two hits and striking-out three.
Up Next...
The Cardinals are set to host Tiffin University on Tuesday (Apr. 3) in another home doubleheader. First pitch is set for 3:00 p.m. at the SVSU Softball Complex.
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