May 2

Extra Inning Victory Sends DC to Title Game

Defiance vs. Rose-Hulman box score

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Defiance will play for its first HCAC Tournament Championship since 2005, after defeating Rose-Hulman, 2-1, in extra innings on Friday, May 2.

The two teams battled to a scoreless tie through the first six innings of the contest. Rose-Hulman ended the scoring drought in the top of the seventh inning, plating one run to grab a 1-0 lead. Defiance sent the game into extra innings with a run in the bottom half of the inning. Cara Hughes continued her HCAC Tournament heroics, driving in Katie Bowman with a single through the right side to tie the game, 1-1.

The Engineers had bases loaded in the top of the eighth inning, but Johnston threw out Katie Maggard on a ground ball to end Rose-Hulman’s hopes of a go-ahead run. DC put its first batters on in the bottom half of the inning.

Johnston is 9-2 with a 0.98 ERA against HCAC opponents.
Laurel Palk got her third hit of the game to lead off the inning, before advancing to second base when the pitcher misplayed Tasha Stucke’s bunt attempt. One batter later Mallory Faling singled to center, but the Engineers were able to throw out Palk at the plate to maintain the tie ballgame. Rose-Hulman committed its second error of the inning on a shot by Kayla Crager, allowing Stucke to score the game-winning run.

Justine Johnston (15-6) pitched her second complete game of the day, holding the Engineers to just one run, unearned, in eight innings to win the pitcher’s duel. The junior scattered eight hits over the course of the game, while striking out three batters. Johnston is now 9-2 with a 0.98 ERA against HCAC opponents, having allowed two earned runs or less in 12 of her last 13 starts.

DC tallied seven hits in the game, capitalizing on three Engineer errors. Palk led the Jackets with three hits, while Crager, Faling, Hughes and Marah Robinson also recorded hits for Defiance. Hughes has now driven in a run in both of DC’s HCAC Tournament games.

Defiance (21-16) will face the winner of the Mount St. Joseph/Rose-Hulman contest on Saturday, May 3. The game is scheduled to begin at 2:00 p.m.