Chicago, Ill. - The Thunder softball team won a pair of games in a doubleheader at University of Chicago (2-3) on Monday afternoon. The Thunder won the opener 9-4. Wheaton (3-3) earned a dramatic 6-5 victory in the second game that was called due to darkness after five innings. The victories marked the first twinbill sweep for the Thunder against UChicago since Wheaton won a pair of games on the Hyde Park campus in 2015.

Today marked the first doubleheader sweep for the Wheaton softball program since a sweep of Elmhurst at home on April 26, 2019. It was the first sweep for the Thunder on the road since a pair of victories at North Park on April 9, 2019. 

Wheaton won today's opener 9-4 as the Thunder scored nine runs, on 11 hits, with no errors and the Maroons plated four runs, on 10 hits with two errors. Alex Hilton was 2-for-4 with a walk and she scored a pair of runs. Ashley Carter was 2-for-5 with two RBI and two runs scored hitting a home for the guests. Melissa Meiners had a 2-for-5 effort at the plate with two RBI. Andrews, Hilton and starting pitcher Emilie Gist each hit a double. Gist (2-2) earned the victory in seven innings in the circle. She allowed four runs, on 10 hits, with three walks and three strikeouts.

Wheaton took an early 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning on a RBI-double to centerfield by Gist. She drove in Hilton who hit a two-out double in the previous at bat. Chicago tallied four runs in the bottom of the second inning to take a 4-1 lead on the Thunder.

The Thunder offense came alive in the top of the fourth inning to take a 6-4 lead. Paige Andrew hit a two-run double in the fourth to tie the game at 4-4. Meiners drove a two-run single through the middle of the infield to give the guests a 6-4 lead. Wheaton added three more runs in the top of the fifth inning to extend its lead to 9-4. Sydney Heinrich drove in a run in the fifth with a RBI-single and she scored on the next at bat when Hilton belted a two run home run over the fence in left field. Gist held Chicago to just two its in the final three innings as the guests held on for the victory.

Wheaton held on for a 6-5 victory in the daylight shortened nightcap. Wheaton scored six runs, on five hits, with no errors. The Maroons scored five runs on 10 hits, with one error. Starting pitcher Alese Anonello tossed 1-1/3 innings. She allowed five runs, on six hits, with one strikeout. Carter (1-0) earned the win in 3-2/3 innings as she held Chicago scoreless. Carter scattered four hits with two strikeouts.

Gist was 2-for-3 in the nightcap with one run scored and a RBI. Claire Busch hit a grans slam in the key opening inning for the guests. Hilton belted a double. 

The Thunder offense attacked early, scoring all of its runs in the first inning. Gist hit a RBI-single to drive in Carter. Busch walked up to the plate with the bases loaded and belted a home run over the centerfield fence to extend the lead to 5-0. Carter drove in a run to give the guests a 6-0 lead before the Maroons' first at bat in the game. Chicago trimmed the Wheaton lead to 6-3 in the bottom of the first inning with three runs for the Maroons. 

Chicago added two more runs in the bottom of the second inning to cut deeper into the Thunder lead at 6-5. Darkness loomed in the fifth inning as the Maroons' first two base runners reached in the bottom of the fifth. Carter forced Chicago's Katie O'Donnell into a fielder's choice with the lead runner out at third base. Following a wild pitch, the Maroons had runners at second and third with one out when Carter struck out the next batter and she induced a ground out to third base for the final at bat of the game and securing the dramatic 6-5 Thunder victory.

Wheaton opens conference play on Wednesday afternoon at Illinois Wesleyan. The twinbill with the Titans is slated to begin at 3:00 p.m. in Bloomington.