March 29

DC Softball snaps skid with doubleheader split
Nick Williams, Assistant SID

Defiance vs Adrian: Game 1 / Game 2

ADRIAN, Mich. – The Defiance College Softball team was able to get back on the winning track with a doubleheader split against Adrian College, falling 10-2 before bouncing back with a 12-4 win. DC entered the doubleheader having dropped its last four before the victory in the nightcap.

In the first game, the Bulldogs fired the initial salvo, bringing across a run in the first. DC took little time to respond, as Kayla Crager cranked a home run in the next inning to knot the game at one. Adrian would then go on to add two more runs in the next frame to go back on top by a pair.

Amanda Auzins had three hits for DC on the day
DC put another run on the board in the top of the four off of a Melanie Bushman RBI single to pull within one. Unfortunately for the Jackets, Adrian put on an offensive show over the last two innings, scoring once in the fifth and bringing around six in the following frame to end the game.

Justine Johnston was touched up in the matchup for seven runs in five innings of work with three strikeouts. Amanda Auzins had two hits in the game in addition to Crager’s home run. Laurel Palk scored DC’s other run in the game.

The second game saw DC turn the tables with an offensive showing of its own. The Jackets scored in each of the first three innings, highlighted by RBIs by Crager, Renee Steffen, and Stephanie Lieto. Remarkably enough, the Bulldogs added a run in each of the first four innings, giving DC a scant 5-4 lead entering the top of the fifth.

At this point, the Jackets’ bats awoke and got to work in a hurry. DC put together an aggressive performance that saw the Jackets score three in the fifth and two in each of the sixth and seventh innings. Auzins and Kelsey Sugg each put together RBI doubles during the scoring frenzy.

Seven Jackets had at least one hit in the game, including Steffen and Aarika Davis who each had two hits in the game, with Steffen scoring two runs and Davis plating two DC runs.

Robin Diers picked up her fourth win of the season, going the distance giving up four runs while striking out two.

Defiance (7-11) will kick off the conference season with an HCAC matchup against Manchester College Saturday in Indiana. First pitch is scheduled for 1:00 p.m.