It was a long time coming, but the first home games played by the Hillsdale College softball team were worth the wait.
Thanks to an unmercifully cold and snowy winter, the Chargers had to wait 12 days later than originally scheduled to play their first games in the friendly confines of Johnny Williams Field. Hillsdale got outs and hits in the most crucial situations in wins over Urbana University by scores of 4-3 and 7-5 on a cloudy Thursday afternoon.
The sweep improves Hillsdale to 9-13 overall on the season. The team will remain home this weekend when it resumes conference play, hosting Northwood University at 1 p.m. Satuday, and Lake Superior State University at noon Sunday.
The home schedule literally got started with a bang for the Chargers when sophomore Sarah Grunert homered to left-center field in the team's first home at bat of the season. Her blast was part of a three-run first inning that got the team off to a fast start.
After Grunert's shot, freshmen Jessica Knepper and Bekah Kastning followed with singles. A fielding error by the Blue Knights loaded the bases, and Sarah Klopfer came through with an RBI groundout to make it 2-0.
Junior Melissa Felkey has been swinging one of the team's hottest bats lately, and she sent a double to center field that brought home Kastning to push the Charger lead to 3-0. Felkey has four multi-hit games in the past five days.
Sophomore shortstop Julia Kosco scored what turned out to be the game-winning run, coming home thanks to a single by Knepper to make Hillsdale's lead 4-0 in the second inning.
Grunert came on in relief of starting pitcher Kate Ardrey to record the win in relief. She shut out the Blue Knights in 3 1/3 innings of work, allowing just two hits and striking out two.
Felkey, Grunert and Knepper were each 2-for-3 in the opener, giving Hillsdale excellent production throughout the lineup.
Hillsdale took a different path to victory in game two. Urbana jumped out to a 3-0 lead through the top of the second inning. The Chargers answered back impressively, scoring two in the second and four in the fourth inning to regain control of the contest.
Felkey opened the second with a walk, and later scored on a big single by senior Kristi Gordon. Gordon then touched home, hustling around from second base on a single by Grunert.
Two innings later, Grunert brought home two more runs with a single to center, scoring Kate Ardrey and Ainsley Ellison with the go-ahead runs. Knepper continued her big day with a two-run single one batter later, turning it into a 6-4 Charger lead.
Urbana tallied one run in the top of the sixth, but Hillsdale answered in the bottom half of the frame when Klopfer singled Knepper home with a valuable insurance run.
Klopfer got her third win of the season on the mound, going all seven innings.
Grunert had her best game of the season in the nightcap, going 3-for-3 with 3 RBI and a run scored. Knepper pounded out two more hits, while the bottom five players in the lineup all scored runs, a positive sign that the team got production from every spot in the order in the ballgame.