BELOIT, Wis. — The Lawrence University softball team rallied to win the nightcap against Beloit College on Saturday after dropping a heartbreaker in the opener at the Strong Stadium Complex.
Beloit (6-24, 4-6 MWC) won the opener 2-1 in eight innings, and Lawrence (13-11, 3-5) took the second game 5-4.
In the second game, Lawrence trailed 3-0 early but came back to win it in the final inning. The Vikings scored an unearned run in the third and added another run in the fourth when Alex Chiodo walked and later scored on Alissa Geipel’s triple to trim the margin to 3-2.
Beloit got a run back in the bottom half of the inning to push the lead to 4-2, but the Vikings scored twice in the top of the fifth. Chiodo singled to score Shannon Murray, and Taylor Dodson later singled to score Chiodo to tie it at 4-4.
The score stayed that way until the top of the seventh when Anna Wawiorka started the rally with a one-out single. She stole second and went to third on a wild pitch before Chiodo tripled to drive her in for a 5-4 lead.
Murray, who had come on in relief of starter Kara Vance, worked around a lead-off double in the bottom half of the inning to secure the win. Murray went 2.2 innings and allowed three hits.
Chiodo went 2-for-3 and drove in two runs, and Murray and Geipel both had two hits for the Vikings.
In the opener, it was a pitchers’ duel as both teams were held scoreless through seven innings.
Lawrence took a 1-0 lead in the top of the eighth. Wawiorka reached on a bunt single and went to second on a throwing error. After Chiodo singled and stole second, the Vikings had runners at second and third. Geipel’s groundout scored Wawiorka, but that was all the Vikings would get in the inning.
Tala-Marie Cornell led off the bottom half of the inning with a homer against Murray to tie the game at 1-1. After Bethany Stavrakas followed with a single, she went to second on a sacrifice bunt and moved to third on a wild pitch. Emily Dorjath’s single to left field scored Stravrakas to win it for Beloit.
Jen Zucker went the distance and got the win for Beloit. She allowed three hits, struck out seven and walked one. Murray went the distance for Lawrence, allowed seven hits, struck out five and walked three.
Lawrence returns to action on Sunday when it travels to Ripon College.