TIFFIN, OHIO – The Saginaw Valley State University softball team dropped both games at Tiffin on Friday afternoon. The Cardinals (11-7) fell 2-0 to the Dragons (14-8) in game one before suffering a 6-1 defeat in game two.
GAME 1: Tiffin 2 – SVSU 0
Kate Pnacek, Olivia Elliott, Mya Purdy, and Emma Helvie each recorded a hit for SVSU in game one. Macy Irelan (L, 4-3) pitched her seventh complete game while giving up two hits and two runs. Irelan struck out nine Tiffin batters in her six innings of work.
SVSU threatened in the top of the second inning when Purdy hit a two-out single before moving to third on a follow-up single from Helvie. Helvie then stole second, but the Dragons stopped the threat with the third out on the next batter. Tiffin took a 1-0 lead on a two-out home run in the bottom half of the second inning.
A solo home run led off the bottom of the fifth inning and Tiffin pushed the lead to 2-0, where it would stay through the final two innings.
Elliott singled to lead of the seventh. Evelynn Rybicki advanced to third after entering the game as a pinch runner, but the Dragons recorded the final out before SVSU could record a run.
GAME 2: Tiffin 6 – SVSU 1
Elliott led the Cardinal bats in the second game with two hits and an RBI in her three plate appearances. Aalana Kimble had SVSU's other hit in the game and also scored the lone run put on the board.
Kimble (L, 4-2) started in the circle and went four innings. Irelan relieved for an inning and recorded two strikeouts while Delaney Conley entered for an inning and also struck out two batters.
Kimble started things off with a double in the top of the first inning. Elliott singled two batters later to score Kimble and the Cardinals hopped to a 1-0 lead early.
A two-out single in the bottom half of the second inning tied the score at one run and an SVSU error in the second gave Tiffin a second run for a 2-1 edge going into the third.
Two singles in the fifth inning scored three more for the Dragons and pushed the advantage to 5-1 with just two innings to go.
Elliott got her second hit in the top of the sixth but got no further than second base when the third out was tallied. Another Saginaw Valley State error gave Tiffin the final run of the game in the sixth.
UP NEXT: The Cardinals have one more doubleheader on the road at Hillsdale on Wednesday, March 19. Game one is scheduled for a 2:00 p.m., first pitch.