Oilers Crush Crusaders
The University of Findlay softball team traveled to Livonia, Mich. on Saturday, March 19th for a double header against Madonna University. The Oilers swept Madonna as they won 11-1 in game one and 12-2 in game two to improve to 12-8 on the season.
The Oilers offense erupted for nineteen hits in the first game of the day.
Senior Brooke Scherger started the game with a leadoff triple. Scherger found her way home from a sacrifice fly by sophomore Cassidy Ghesquiere for an early 1-0 Oiler lead.
In the second inning, Findlay added two more runs thanks to a two run home run from sophomore Destinie Keeton after a single by junior Katie Dunphy to give the Oilers a 3-0 lead at the end of the second inning.
In the top of the third, Scherger doubled and Ghesquiere singled to begin the inning. Junior Lauren Trumpler would come up with an RBI single before the inning would end to give Findlay a 4-0 advantage at the end of three innings.
After a scoreless fourth inning for both teams, the host Crusaders got their first and only run of the game in the bottom of the fifth inning to the cut the Oiler lead to 4-1.
Findlay added to their lead in the top of the sixth as they came up with three more runs on four hits. Sophomore Amanda Delmonte began the inning with a double and junior Jenna Huff followed up with a single that advanced the runner to third. After Huff stole second, Scherger continued her hot streak with a RBI single. A sacrifice fly by sophomore Kelley Cejer and a RBI single by Trumpler would round out the scoring for Findlay in the inning to extend their lead to 7-1.
The Oilers' offense continued to find success in the seventh inning, as they registered four runs on five hits. Keeton led off with a single and Rebecca Harvey reached on an error. After a groundout, Huff singled to score Harvey. Scherger reached on an error to load the bases. Back-to-back-to-back RBI singles by Ghesquiere, Cejer and Trumpler put the Oilers up 11-1, which ended up as the final score of the game.
Eight Oilers finished with multiple hits in the first game, with Scherger leading the way going 4-for-5 with a triple and a double.
Freshman Hailey Bryan (3-5) picked up the victory on the mound for Findlay as she pitched four innings giving up one run, on six hits, with two walks and one strike out. Sophomore Morgan James came in relief to pitch the final three innings giving up no runs on just four hits and struck out two.
In the second game, the offense continued to excel as they exploded for sixteen hits.
The Oilers got on the scoreboard in the first inning. After a Cejer single, Trumpler doubled to bring her around the bases for an early 1-0 lead after one inning of play.
Madonna responded with a run of their own in the bottom of the second inning to tie the game at 1-1 heading into the third.
In the third with two outs, freshman Erika Farst singled and Cejer walked. That brought Trumpler to the plate and she delivered in a big way with a three run home run to take a 4-1 Findlay lead.
The fourth inning featured both squads adding a run. For the Oilers, Delmonte started the inning off with a double. After two outs, Scherger provided a single to score Delmonte to put Findlay on top 5-1, but in the bottom half of the inning the Crusaders would tack on a run to cut the lead to 5-2.
With one out, Cejer singled in the top of the fifth inning. Trumpler walked to put two runners on. Keeton cleared the bases with a three run home run before the inning ended to extend the lead to 8-2 in favor of the Oilers.
In the sixth, freshman Breanna Cleland doubled to begin the inning. Scherger brought her home with a triple and Farst returned the favor with a RBI single. Cejer provided more run support with a RBI double to score Farst. A single by Trumpler ended the scoring for the inning, and the game for both teams for a final score of 12-2.
Six Oilers recorded multiple hits in the second game, with Cejer and Trumpler leading the way as they both went 3-for-3 at the plate. Trumpler finished the second game with five RBIs.
Sophomore Chelsea McManaway (8-1) got the win on the mound for the Oilers. She pitched four innings giving up two runs, three walks and struck out nine. Freshman Molly Crosby came in relief to pitch the remaining two innings. She gave up no runs, just three hits, one walk and struck out two.
The University of Findlay softball team returns to the field on Wednesday, March 25th as they travel to Sylvania, Ohio to take on Lourdes University for a double header. The first game is scheduled to begin at 3:30pm.