Wheaton, Ill. – The Wheaton Thunder softball team hosted Carroll University on Tuesday afternoon in a CCIW doubleheader at Ruth Leedy Field. The Pioneers won the first game 11-0 and earned the sweep of the twinbill with an 8-4 victory in the second game.
Carroll won the first game 11-0 in five innings behind a no-hitter by Pioneers' pitcher Amanda Osterhus. Carroll scored 11 runs, on nine hits, with no errors and Wheaton had no runs, zero hits, committing five errors. Osterhus walked one Wheaton batter and struck out 13.
Carroll broke a scoreless tie with six runs in the top of the second inning to take a 6-0 lead. The Pioneers added five runs in the top of the third to account for the 11-0 final score.
The Pioneers accomplished the sweep with an 8-4 victory in the second game. Carroll scored eight runs, on 10 hits, with one error. Wheaton tallied four runs, on nine hits, with four errors.
Morgan Ryan was 3-for-4 at the plate for the Thunder, with two RBI and a run. Ryan tallied two doubles in the nightcap. Senior
Megan Neuhaus was 2-for-4 for the hosts.
Melody Rodriguez,
Hannah Clark and
Kelly Thornton each added a hit for the hosts.
Wheaton gained an early lead, scoring twice in the top of the first inning. Clark led off the game with a bunt single and promptly stole second base. She scored on a RBI-double by Ryan two batters later. Ryan scored on a Carroll error when the Pioneers attempted a pickoff that sailed into leftfield. The Pioneers trimmed Wheaton's lead to 2-1 with a run in the bottom of the first inning.
Carroll scored twice in the bottom of the second inning to take a 3-2 lead. Wheaton tied the game at 3-3 with a run in the top of the third inning. Thornton led off the top of the third with a double to left field just out of reach of the out-stretched arm of the Pioneers' left fielder. Thornton scampered home two batters later on a Carroll passed ball to tie the game. The Pioneers regained the lead with two runs in the bottom of the third inning to give Carroll a 5-3 advantage.
The Pioneers extended their lead to 7-3 with two runs in the bottom of the fourth inning. Carroll scored once in the bottom of the sixth inning to extend its lead to 8-3. Wheaton added a run in the bottom of the seventh inning to account for the 8-4 final score. A pitch to lead off the bottom of the seventh inning hit
Julia Arthur. Arthur scored two batters later on a single through the right side of the infield by Ryan.
Wheaton's schedule for the remainder of the week has been altered due to rain in the forecast later this week. Wheaton will host North Park for a CCIW doubleheader on Thursday at 3:00 p.m. in a matchup that was originally scheduled for Friday. Wheaton was originally scheduled to host Calvin on Thursday in a doubleheader that will be re-scheduled later this season. The Thunder travel to Millikin Friday at 3:00 p.m. for a doubleheader that was originally scheduled for Saturday.
