Elmhurst, Ill. – The Wheaton softball team traveled to Elmhurst on Tuesday afternoon for a conference road test against the Bluejays at Salt Creek Park. The squads spilt the doubleheader as Wheaton won the opener 17-6, and Elmhurst (8-17, 2-8 CCIW) won the nightcap 5-1. Wheaton is now 14-16 on the season and 2-8 in conference play. The Thunder host Carroll on Thursday at 3:00 p.m. in a CCIW doubleheader.
The Thunder won game won 17-6 as Wheaton scored 17 runs, on 17 hits, with no errors and Elmhurst tallied six runs, on eight hits, with four errors. Thunder starting pitcher
Emilie Gist allowed six runs, on eight hits, in 5-1/3 innings of work. Gist struck out seven and walked six.
Alese Antonello pitched 2/3 of an inning of scoreless relief, allowing no hits.
Paige Andrews was 3-for-3, with two walks, three runs and three RBI. Andrews hit a leadoff home run to start the game, and also belted a double.
Claire Busch returned to the Thunder lineup, going 3-for-5, with two runs and two RBI, hitting a double.
Elise O'Neil was 2-for-2, with two RBI and two runs scored.
Sydney Heinrich was 2-for-2, with a walk, three runs scored and two RBI.
Elizabeth Meyer was 2-for-3, with two walks and she scored twice.
Olivia Nahorniak was 2-for-4, with a walk, scoring twice and one RBI.
Emilie Gist was 2-for-5, with two RBI.
Wheaton took an early 2-0 lead as Andrews led off the game with a solo home run to leftfield, and Busch hit an RBI-single. Andrews increased Wheaton's lead to 3-0 with an RBI-single in the top of the second inning. Elmhurst trimmed Wheaton's lead to 3-1 with a run in the bottom of the of the second.
Wheaton broke the game open with five runs in the top of the third inning to extend its lead to 8-1.
Madison Forberg,
Sydney Heinrich, and Gist each hit an RBI-single in the inning as O'Neil drove in a run with a sacrifice fly. Elmhurst scored twice in the bottom of the third inning to make Wheaton's lead 8-3.
The Thunder added three more runs in the top of the fourth inning for an 11-3 lead. Andrews hit an RBI-double, with RBI-singles by O'Neil and Heinrich. Elmhurst scored a run in the bottom of the fifth inning scored a run in the bottom of the fifth inning for an 11-4 Wheaton lead.
Wheaton scored six more runs in the top of the sixth inning to increase its advantage to 17-4. Gist and Nahorniak each had an RBI-single in the inning. Elmhurst added two runs in the bottom of the sixth inning account for the 17-6 final score as the game ended after six innings.
Elmhurst won today's finale 5-1 as the Bluejays scored five runs, on nine hits, with two errors and Wheaton tallied one run, on six hits, with one error. Antonello (6-10), the Thunder starting pitcher, worked all seven innings. She allowed five runs, on nine hits, with four strikeouts and three walks. Andrews was 2-for-4 for Wheaton with a double.
Wheaton scored one run in the bottom of the first inning as Andrews hit a leadoff single and she scored five batters later with an RBI-single by Busch. Elmhurst took the lead with three runs in the top of the sixth inning to gain a 3-1 advantage. The Bluejays added two more runs in the top of the seventh inning to account for the 5-1 final scored.
