The Hillsdale College softball team's offense played one of its best doubleheaders of the season as the Chargers powered past visiting Kentucky Wesleyan for a doubleheader sweep on Saturday.
The Chargers combined for 29 hits in 12 innings in the doubleheader, winning 13-7 in game one and 11-0 in five innings in the second game to run their win streak to 10 straight.
Hillsdale jumped on the Panthers early in game one, plating six runs in the bottom of the first inning. Reagan Gensiejewski hit a two-run single, and Kasidy Carson and Natalie Stepanenko each chipped in RBI singles as well as the Chargers batted around to start the game.
Kentucky Wesleyan rallied in the third and fourth innings, scoring six straight runs to tie the game at six apiece. With control of the game slipping away, Hillsdale took charge in the bottom of the fourth inning, as Gensiejewski hit another two-run single and the Chargers generated a third run on an error to retake a 9-6 lead.
Hillsdale tacked on two more runs in the bottom of the fifth, and sealed the victory with a two-run double by Olivia Latimer in the bottom of the sixth to take a seven-run lead. Kentucky Wesleyan got one run back in the top of the seventh, but with only three outs, were down too much to rally back from the full deficit.
Madison Stoner went 4 for 4 at the plate to lead the Chargers in the victory, and Stepanenko finished with four hits as well for the Chargers.
Joni Russell got the win, her 12th of the season, for Hillsdale, pitching four innings with five strikeouts, one walk and only two earned runs. Freshman Emma Vis pitched an inning of relief for Hillsdale, striking out one and walking two, and senior Camryn Olson closed out the game with two solid innings, striking out one and giving up just two hits and one earned run.
The second game was all Chargers from the start, as Hillsdale took an early lead and then pulled away for good with an eight-run third inning.
The Chargers went up 2-0 with another fast start in the bottom of the first, thanks to an RBI double by Stoner and a RBI single by Madison Rathbun. Latimer tacked on another run in the bottom of the second with a RBI single of her own.
Then, in the bottom of the third, the dam broke. Hillsdale led off the inning with seven straight hits, including doubles by Stoner and Rathbun. Sophomore McKenna Eichholz and Elaine Townley hit two-run doubles for the Chargers in the bottom of the third, and Jenna Cantalupo, Hailey Holtman and Gensiejewski each chipped in a RBI single as well.
Erin Kapteyn finished off the shut-out for her ninth win of the season on the mound, striking out four, walking one, and giving up just four hits in five innings in the victory.
Stoner went 3 for 3 at the plate to bat 1.000 for the day, and Rathbun and Latimer each chipped in two hits as well to help the Chargers' cause in the victory.
Hillsdale is now 24-17 overall, and 12-1 in G-MAC play, remaining level with leaders Ohio Dominican and Findlay in what is quickly becoming a three-team race for the conference title. The Chargers are red-hot since the middle of March, now 20-3 over the last month after a 4-14 start.
Next week, the Chargers travel to Ashland on Friday, April 23 and host Ursuline on Saturday, April 24, looking to maintain its momentum with just two weeks and four doubleheaders left in the regular season.
Photo by Isabella Sheehan