SOFTBALL

After suffering a 9-4 loss to Saint Francis in the opener, the HU softball team bounced back to take game two, 5-4, to split the doubleheader with their visitors to the northeast.

Huntington got down early in game one and unfortunately could never dig out of their hole. After plating three runs in their first at-bat, the Cougars (14-11, 6-6) added a run in each of the next two frames for a 5-0 advantage.

Jocelyn Winebrenner finally got the Foresters on the board in the fourth when she drove in Audrey Barnes and Abigail Reed, both of whom reached  base on infield singles.  Down by three at 5-2 kept things interesting but USF didn’t let anything outrageous come out of it as they found home four more times in seventh.

The hosts got two back right away in the home half of the frame when Breanna Hines traded spots with Jenessa Hasty who had led off with a double. Hines later scored on an error to pull within five. HU kept the pressure on with a pair of singles but unfortunately both were left stranded to make for the 9-4 final.

Reed and Adelyn Harsh finished with three and two hits respectively to pace Ehler’s crew at the plate.

Starting pitcher Karlee Franklin was charged with the loss having given up three hits and three runs.

The Foresters got off to a much better start in the nightcap. After Hines and Courtney Mason singled their way on base in the bottom of the first, Barnes and Reed hammered out back-to-back RBI-singles. Winebrenner found her way on first by way of an error to load the bases which set the stage for Harsh’s sacrifice fly that brought in Barnes to make for a 3-0 game.

Huntington was back at it in the second to add two more runs to their lead. Hasty singled through the left side and eventually scored on an error. A few batters later, Mason roped one up the middle to knock in another run to round out HU’s scoring.

While the Cougars threatened several times, they weren’t able to convert any offense into points on the board until the seventh when they reeled off four runs and had the tying run on base. But that’s as close as USF would get as Harsh got the next batter to groundout to Mackenzie Walker for the third out.

Harsh pitched a complete-game gem, carrying a shutout into the seventh before the visitors finally broke it up in their last at-bat. For the game, she struck out four while giving up seven hits, four runs and two walks.

Mason finished with two hits and an RBI. Hines also collected a pair of hits and scored twice. As a team, Huntington outhit USF 10-7.

The Foresters (7-20, 5-11), currently sitting seventh in the league standings, have won four out of their last six games. They hit the road tomorrow to face Spring Arbor at 3:00 p.m.