Lisle, Ill. - The Wheaton softball team (11-11) split a non-conference doubleheader at Benedictine University (15-3) on Wednesday afternoon. The Thunder won the opener 9-2 as Wheaton extended its win streak to six games and snapped the Eagles' win streak at 10 games. Benedictine won the nightcap 12-7.
The Thunder won the opener 9-2 as the guests scored nine runs, on 15 hits, with one error and Benedictine tallied two runs, on seven hits, with one error. Senior pitcher Kelly Thornton (8-5) picked up the win to earn her fifth-consecutive win without a loss in the circle. Thornton pitched all seven inning, allowing two runs, on seven hits, with two strikeouts and one walk.
Morgan Ryan led the Thunder at the plate with a 4-for-4 effort, including her second home run of the season. Ryan drove in two runs and scored twice. Maddie Craver, Melissa Seiners and Melody Rodriguez each went 2-for-4. Craver drove in two runs and Meiners had one RBI. Thornton, Meiners and Claire Busch each hit a double in the victory.
Benedictine led early with one run in the bottom of the first inning. Wheaton scored twice in the top of the second inning to take a 2-1 lead. Busch led off the top of the second with a double to right centerfield and she scored on Ryan's two-run homer that gave the Thunder a 2-1 advantage.
Wheaton scored five runs in the top of the fourth inning to take a 7-1 lead on the Eagles. Thornton drove in two runs with a RBI double and Hannah Clark hit s RBI-single in the inning. Ashley Carter had a RBI on a sacrifice fly and a run scored on Craver's sacrifice bunt. Benedictine scored a run in the bottom of the fourth inning to trim the Thunder lead to 7-2. The Thunder added two more runs in the top of the fifth inning on Craver's two-run single to extend the Wheaton lead to 9-2.
Bendictine secured the doubleheader split by winning the second game 12-7. The Eagles scored 12 runs, on 14 hits, with three errors and Wheaton tallied seven runs, on nine hits, with one error. Maddy Whitmer (1-1) took the loss in 1/3 of an inning. She allowed five runs, on six hits. Carter pitched 5-2/3 innings of relief as allowed seven runs, including six earned runs, on eight hits with two walks.Â
Thornton was 3-for-4 with a home run, a run scored and one driven in. Clark was 2-for-3 with two runs scored. Carter was 2-for-4 with three RBI.
Wheaton took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning on Thornton's solo home run to left field. Benedictine responded with eight runs in the bottom of the first inning to give the hosts an 8-1 advantage. The Eagles added a pair of runs in the bottom of the second inning to extend the hosts' lead to 10-1. Wheaton scored three runs in the top of the third inning to trim the Benedictine lead to 10-4.Carter drove in two runs in the inning and Busch added a RBI.
Wheaton scored twice in the top of the fourth to trim the hosts' lead to 10-6. Carter drove in a run with a RBI-single and Craver scored on a Benedictine error in the inning. Clark led of the top of the sixth inning with a double and she scored on Craver's sacrifice fly two batters later to trim the Benedictine lead 10-7. The Eagles scored twice in the bottom of the sixth inning to account for the 12-7 final score.
Wheaton returns to action on Saturday at Illinois Wesleyan. The doubleheader against the fourth-ranked Titans begins at 1:00 p.m. in Bloomington.
