SOFTBALL

Facing one of the nation’s best, the HU softball team (11-22,7-16) was the wrong end of a pair of losses, 12-5, 8-2, to #RV Taylor University (25-10, 17-6) Saturday afternoon.

The Trojans got rolling early in game one to open up a 5-1 advantage. It proved a lead that stuck as they would go on to outscore their hosts 7-4 the rest of the way to maintain a comfortable cushion throughout.

Homeruns became common place with HU posting a pair while Taylor sent four out of the park. For the Foresters, Sophia Beachy sent her first pitch deep in the bottom of the second. Fast forward to the fifth when Paige Eichelberger also capitalized on her first pitch to crush one straight on for her second dinger in 24 hours.

HU’s final three runs came in the sixth on consecutive singles by Joelle Beals and Rozlynn Everhart with Beals knocking in a run with her infield base poke and Everhart driving in a pair with her shot up the middle.

Gower’s crew finished with ten hits to TU’s 16 with Beachy and Kiera Stacy collecting two each.

Mallory West took the loss for HU by giving up 11 hits and seven runs through the first six frames.

Neither team could get much going in the first three innings of the nightcap after which the Trojans scored in each of the final four at bats to cruise to their second straight W over HU. Down 3-0 heading into the bottom of the fifth, Huntington finally got on the board when Everhart cleared the center field fence for the first four-bagger of her career.

The Foresters loaded the bases in the seventh and was able to punch one run across the plate on Beachy’s RBI-groundout but they would get no closer to suffer the six-run loss.

MacKyndsea Burke was tagged with the loss in the nightcap having surrendered five hits, eight runs and a walk while striking out two. In 45.2 innings in the circle, the freshman hurler has given up just 11 walks.

The Foresters wrap up a ten-game home stand on Tuesday when they host Spring Arbor at 3:00 p.m.