MARIETTA, Ohio (March 1, 2022) – The Denison University softball team split its first doubleheader of the 2022 season on Tuesday, falling 6-3 in game one before bouncing back with a 6-0 win six innings in game two at Marietta College.
 
Game 1 (Denison 3, Marietta 6):

• After Denison had a runner thrown out at home after a fly out to left field to end the top of the first inning, Marietta struck first with a two-out solo home run to right center field in the bottom of the inning.
• Denison answered right back in the top of the second inning as Caitlin Ellwanger led off with a walk and later scored on a one-out double to right center by Jacqui Abogado to tie it at 1-1.
• Abogado then advanced to third on a single down the right field line by Clara Wolff, and then scored on an RBI-groundout to second base by starting pitcher Lexi Knipp to help her own cause and put the Big Red ahead by a score of 2-1.
• Then after the Pioneers tied it at 2-2 with a two-out rally in the bottom of the third inning, another two-out home run for Marietta, this time a two-run blast to center field in the bottom of the fourth inning, doubled up the Big Red at 4-2.
• After Claire Powell walked with two outs in the top of the fifth inning, Allie Kovatch nearly tied the game up herself, but instead settled for a double to center field to score Powell from first and get the Big Red to within a run at 4-3.
• Unfortunately, in the bottom of the sixth inning, a third two-out home run for Marietta, its second two-run homer of the game and this time to left field, doubled up the score again at 6-3.
• In the top of the seventh inning, the Big Red loaded the bases with two outs, but a foul out to the first baseman was all she wrote.
• Both teams finished with seven hits in the game, but the seven runners left on base for the Big Red made a difference.

 
Game 2 (Denison 6, Marietta 0):

• After finishing as the lone Big Red player with two hits in game one, Maggie Ballentine led off game two with a home run to left field.
• Wolff followed up Balentine's home run with a two-out shot of her own to right center field in the top of the second inning to make it 2-0.
• Then in the top of the third, the big inning for the Big Red began as Ballentine led off with a double to center field and then scored on the ensuing single to center by Powell. Later in the inning, Ellwanger doubled down the left field line to score Powell, Sam Kline had a sacrifice fly to right field to score Annabelle Calderon, and then Abogado singled to center to score Ellwanger and cap the four-run inning.
• Sydney Silverstein (1-2) pitched all six innings and limited the Pioneers to only two hits while not walking any and striking out four. She set down 14 consecutive batters between the first and the sixth innings.
• Ballentine was 3-for-4 with a home run, a double and two runs scored while Ellwanger was 2-for-3 with two doubles.

 
Records:

• Denison moved to 2-5 on the young season while Marietta (1-1) was playing in its season opener. The Big Red had previously swept its last three doubleheaders against the Pioneers during the 2017, 2018 and 2019 seasons.

 
Next Up: The Big Red will play at Franklin College beginning at 1 p.m. on Saturday, March 12.