2-0 Shutout in Game 1 Quieted by 6-4 Loss in Game 2 vs. Aquinas
Game 1 Box Score | Game 2 Box Score
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - Sam Cole pitched a 3-hit complete game to lift Davenport to a 2-0 victory in game one but timely Aquinas hits gave the Saints a split with the 6-4 win in game two. Davenport now stands at 34-12 on the year and 11-5 in WHAC play.
DU got off to a quick start in the first game after sweeping Aquinas on Saturday as Haley Stehouwer (Wyoming, Mich.) doubled to lead off the bottom half of the first. After moving to second on a sacrifice, Stehouwer would score on the next play when Heather Brusokas (Glendale, Calif.) reached on an error.
That would be all of the scoring until the bottom of the fifth when Morgan Greenfield (Wyoming, Mich.) walked and was pinch run for by Jessica Fagan (Spokane, Wash.). After another sacrifice and putout by the Saints, Ashlee Olsen (Rockford, Mich.) singled to center to bring home Fagan and give DU the insurance run.
Cole then continued to dominate on the mound as she did not allow another hit for the remainder of the game and struck out three of her 10 on the game for her 16th win of the year.
Game two again started out positive for Davenport as Stehouwer scored in the bottom of the first for the second straight game. After a scoreless second inning, the Saints broke through with a four-run 3rd to take a 4-1 lead.
The Lady Panthers did not back down though and brought home two runs in the bottom of the third to get within one. Haley Stehouwer hit her 8th homer of the year and Kristin Miedema (Newaygo, Mich.) scored on an RBI double from Karlee Despres (Belmont, Mich.).
DU's Brianna Carpenter (Irvine, Calif.) got the Saints to go down without a serious threat in the 5th collecting two strikeouts, but DU could not get any more runs in their half as they left one on base.
The Saints added an insurance run of their own in the 6th inning to go up 6-3, but DU then started a rally in the bottom half. After Despres homered to start the inning, DU put the next two batters on but could not advance them as they were stranded on 1st and 2nd to end the inning.
Davenport then went down without a serious threat to score in the 7th as AQ escaped with the split.
Despres took the loss to fall to 7-4 on the year as the Lady Panthers are now 34-12 and 11-5 in the WHAC. The loss is the first in the last 8 games for DU and breaks a 5-game winning streak against the Saints.
DU will host Madonna University on Friday beginning at 4:00 PM. The two teams will pick up where they left off on April 3 with the Lady Panthers leading 6-1 in the bottom of the 4th in game one.
