The Denison softball team's senior class shined as the Big Red completed a pivotal North Coast Athletic Conference doubleheader sweep of Hiram College on "Senior Night" in Granville. The Big Red edged the Terriers 5-4 in game one, and blanked Hiram 2-0 in the nightcap.
In the opener, Hiram jumped out to an early 1-0 lead on an Alexandra Singer double that drove in Kelly Langland from first base. The Big Red tied the game in the bottom of the second when senior Alex Murray (Mayfield Heights, Ohio/NDCL) belted her eighth home run of the season down the left field line.
In the third frame, junior Erica Evans (Worthington, Ohio/Thomas Worthington) laced a one-out double into the gap in left-center field. Senior Brie Berkopec (Mars, Pa./Mars Senior) followed that up by lining a 3-0 pitch through the middle of the infield to score Evans. With one on and one out, Murray sent another pitch from Hiram hurler Whitney Dropsey out of the park to extended the DU lead to 4-1. The senior's ninth homer of the year sailed over the wall in left field.
In the fourth inning, Dropsey helped her own cause by dropping a two-out single into center. The base knock scored Marlene Smith and Megan Troxell, and trimmed the Denison lead to one (4-3). The Big Red regained a 5-3 edge in the bottom of the inning on a ground out by Murray the scored fellow senior Emily Croll (Oak Harbor, Ohio/Oak Harbor).
The Terriers cut the deficit to one when Erin Kellar scored on a two-out wild pitch. However, Denison senior Leslie Brenner (Deerfield, Ill./Deerfield) got Smith to foul out to Croll to lock up the win.
Brenner improved to 15-6 on the year after surrendering four runs on 12 hits with five strikeouts, while Dropsey falls to 13-9 on the season.
Murray finished game one with a pair of home runs, four RBIs and two runs scored, while Evans went 2-for-2 with two walks and a run scored. Berkopec logged a pair of hits, drove in and scored a run. Her single in the third inning extended her hitting streak to 22 games.
Game two marked the return of senior pitcher Samantha Rumschlag (Carmel, Ind./Cathedral), who is coming off a foot injury that sidelined her for over a month. The senior hurler tossed an absolute gem, scattering four hits and issuing just one free pass in seven innings of work. The shutout was the second of the season for Rumschlag, with the first coming against Central on opening day in Panama City Beach, Fla.
The Big Red offense helped out their senior pitcher with a run in both the first and second innings. Sophomore Lauren Lynn (Cincinnati, Ohio/Sycamore) led the first inning off with a triple to center field. She came around to score when Croll reached base via fielding error. The Big Red added another run in the second when sophomore Kait Fiore (Millburn, N.J./Millburn) scored on a Croll single up the middle.
The two early DU runs proved to be enough as Rumschlag allowed just three hits and stranded four Hiram base runners over the final five frames. With the win, the Carmel, Ind. native improves to 3-4 on the year, while Dropsey suffered the loss and falls to 13-10.
Croll and Fiore both logged two hits in the second game. Croll drove in a run, while Fiore swiped one bag and scored a run.
Denison improves to 25-13 overall and 9-3 in the NCAC, while the Terriers fall to 18-15 on the year and 7-5 in the conference. With only two NCAC games remaining, the Big Red puts themselves in the driver's seat to win a second-consecutive NCAC regular season crown and garner the top-seed in next weekend's conference tournament.
DU closes out the regular season on Saturday (May 1) when they travel to Wooster. Game one of the doubleheader is scheduled to begin at 12 p.m.
