Whether late or early in games, the Hillsdale College softball team's bats have shown a knack for performing when it counts in G-MAC play so far.
That was true again on Friday, as the Chargers used big innings to sweep past visiting Walsh, 9-6 and 11-6, and improve to 7-1 in the G-MAC and 18-11 overall.
Hillsdale fell behind early in the first game after giving up a two run home run in the top of the first, but bounced right back in the bottom of the inning as Sam Catron a three-run home run of her own to give the Chargers a 3-2 lead.
Walsh retook a 4-3 lead in the top of the fifth, but Hillsdale responded with six consecutive runs over two innings to pull away for the victory.
Emma Johnson, in her first game back after missing the last two double hitters, hit two-run singles in both the bottom of the fifth and the bottom of the sixth to secure a 9-6 victory.
Madison Stoner went 3 for 4 at the plate with a double to lead the Chargers, Johnson chipped in three hits as well and Natalie Stepanenko added two hits, inculding a double.
Dana Weidinger earned her 12th win of the season on the mound for Hillsdale, striking out six and walking three in her 11th complete game outing of 2021.
The Chargers jumped out to a big lead in the nightcap, plating seven runs in the first three innings. Stoner, Hailey Holtman and Sarah Wojcik each had a RBI single in a six-hit bottom of the first inning for the Chargers, and Catron hit another three-run home run, her G-MAC leading ninth home run of the season, in the bottom of the second.
Walsh once again battled back in the top of the fifth with four runs, including a three-run home run by Jessie Rock, to cut the Charger lead to 7-5, but Reagan Gensiejewski answered back for Hillsdale in the bottom of the fifth with a RBI single to give the Chargers some breathing room. Hillsdale plated three more insurance runs in the bottom of the sixth, including one on a Makenna Eichholz RBI single, to seal an 11-6 victory.
Catron was 3 for 4 at the plate with a double to go with her home run to lead the Charger offense, Stepanenko went 2 for 4 with a double, and Wojcik added two hits as well.
Camryn Olson earned the win for the Chargers to improve to 3-1 on the year, going six and one-third innings with five strikeouts and four walks, and Erin Kapteyn pitched two-thirds of an inning of relief with one strikeout and one walk to close out the game.
Hillsdale remains a game behind 6-0 Trevecca Nazarene in the conference standings, and two games ahead of third-place Ursuline. The Chargers host Malone on Monday at 3 p.m. in an important doubleheader for both teams, as the Pioneers are currently in fifth in the standings at 7-5 and looking to make a push.
Photo by Kasidy Carson