Softball

Category: Softball

Red Hawks edge Lawrence in pair of games

RIPON, Wis. — The Ripon College softball team hung on for a pair of Midwest Conference wins Monday over Lawrence University by the scores of 3-2 and 4-3.

The losses end the season for the Vikings (13-16, 6-7 MWC), who needed two wins to qualify for the Midwest Conference Tournament.

Lawrence grabbed the lead at the outset of the first game when Cathy Kaye led off the contest with a home run for a 1-0 edge.

Ripon (21-7, 10-3) made the most of its four hits against Lawrence starter Shannon Murray. The Red Hawks got run-scoring hits in the second and third and scored what proved to be the game-winning run on a squeeze bunt in the fifth.

Lawrence cut the lead to 3-2 in the seventh when Emily Perish doubled and scored on Alex Chiodo’s single. Kaye then flied out to end the game.

Stephanie Rieuwpassa went the distance to get the win. She allowed five hits, struck out eight and walked one. Murray took the loss despite allowing only two earned runs.

In the nightcap, Ripon jumped on Perish and scored three times despite hitting only one ball out of the infield.

Ripon led 4-0 when Kaye blasted a two-run homer in the fifth to cut the lead in half. The Vikings then trimmed the margin to 4-3 in the sixth when Chiodo delivered a run-scoring double.

That’s as close as the Vikings would get as Rieuwpassa came on in relief in the seventh and retired the side in order to pick up the save.

Game one box score

Game two box score

Lawrence sweeps doubleheader from Pioneers

The Lawrence University softball team swept a Midwest Conference doubleheader from Carroll University in dramatic fashion on Sunday by the scores of 5-4 and 3-2.

Lawrence (13-4, 6-5 MWC) won the opener with a run in the bottom of the ninth and took the nightcap with a run in the bottom of the eighth.

Cathy Kaye and Alissa Geipel both went 3-for-5 in the opener, and Shannon Murray went 2-for-4 and drove in a pair of runs. Murray also went the distance to pick up the win. She struck out three and didn’t walk a batter.

Lawrence trailed 4-1 after the Pioneers scored three times in the top of the fifth, but the Vikings rallied in the bottom half of the inning. Kaye started the rally with a two-out single, and Geipel then singled sharply off pitcher Christine Roggeman. As Kaye swiped third, Roggeman’s throw got past Rebecca Menelle at third and Kaye scored.

Carli Gurholt was then hit by a pitch and stole second. Murray followed with a two-run single to right to tie the game at 4-4.

The score stayed that way until the bottom of the ninth. Kaye led off with a triple that deflected off Nicole Leden’s glove in rightcenter field. Geipel then hit a rocket past Menelle at third and Kaye scored the winning run.

In the nightcap, the Vikings got some more late-inning heroics to win it.

Lawrence grabbed a 2-0 lead with single runs in the second and third. Gaelen Lombard-Knapp had a run-scoring double in the second, and Gurholt had a RBI groundout  in the third.

The Pioneers (13-18, 5-8) tied it with two runs in the sixth inning as Amanda Strutz and Leden both delivered run-scoring doubles. Carroll escaped a bases-loaded jam in the fifth, and Lawrence left runners in scoring position in both the sixth and seventh.

Lawrence ended it in the bottom of the eighth, and Perish started the inning with a line drive single up the middle. A fielding error on a sacrifice bunt put runners at first and second, and another sacrifice bunt moved them to second and third. Alex Chiodo then singled on a 1-2 pitch to leftcenter to drive home Perish with the winning run.

Chiodo, Lombard-Knapp and Kaye all collected two hits in the nightcap for the Vikings.

Perish, who carried a no-hitter into the sixth, went the distance to pick up the win. She allowed only four hits, struck out four and walked one.

Lawrence returns to action on Monday when it travels to Ripon College to wrap up the regular season.

Game one box score

Game two box score

Vikings rally for doubleheader split with St. Norbert

The Lawrence University softball team rallied from a three-run deficit to take a 4-3 win in the nightcap and split a Midwest Conference doubleheader with St. Norbert College on Wednesday at Whiting Field. St. Norbert won the opener 8-0.

Gaelen Lombard-Knapp hit a three-run homer in the nightcap for Lawrence (11-14, 4-5 MWC), and Emily Perish pitched 3.2 innings of scoreless relief to get the win.

St. Norbert (15-14, 8-3) grabbed a 3-0 lead in the fourth inning of the second game. Abby Van Straten had a two-run single, and Jessica Kropp had a run-scoring double in the inning.

Lawrence then tied it in the bottom half of the fourth. Alissa Geipel started the inning with a double and Shannon Murray followed with a walk. After a fielder’s choice ground out, Lombard-Knapp blasted a three-run homer, her second of the season, to tie the game at 3-3.

Lawrence then grabbed the lead in the bottom of the fifth. Katie Simonsen started the rally with a one-out double. After a sacrifice bunt moved Simonsen to third, Geipel lined a single to right field to score Simonsen and give the Vikings a 4-3 lead.

Perish then worked around a single and an error in the sixth to keep the Green Knights from tying the game.

St. Norbert threatened again in the seventh when Brittany Narges hit a one-out triple. With the infield playing in, Kayla Krueger grounded to shortstop Cory Paquette, who threw home to cut down Narges trying to score. Lombard-Knapp then fired back to Diduch and tagged out Krueger, who was trying to advance to second, to end the game.

Geipel and Diduch both went 2-for-3 for the Vikings in the nightcap.

Krueger, who allowed six hits, struck out five and walked one in going the distance, took the loss for St. Norbert.

In the opener, the Green Knights got a great pitching performance from Kari Corbeille, who tossed a one-hit shutout. The only hit she allowed was was Cathy Kaye’s lead-off single in the bottom of the first.

Kropp went 2-for-4, homered and drove in three runs in the opener. Narges also went 2-for-4 and hit a home run, and Ashtin Schmechel was 2-for-3 with a homer and drove in two runs.

Murray went the distance and took the loss for Lawrence. She allowed 13 hits, struck out four and did not walk a batter.

Game one box score

Game two box score

Tuesday’s baseball, softball doubleheaders postponed

Both the Lawrence University baseball and softball doubleheaders scheduled for Tuesday have been postponed. The baseball doubleheader has been rescheduled to be played at St. Norbert College on May 4 at a time to be determined.

The softball doubleheader, also vs. St. Norbert, has been rescheduled for Wednesday at Whiting Field. First pitch for the softball doubleheader is set for 3 p.m.

In addition, Wednesday’s baseball game with MSOE at Whiting Field has been canceled.

Weather forces changes to Lawrence schedule

A late April snowstorm has forced multiple changes to the Lawrence University spring sports schedule this week.

The Friday, April 22, softball doubleheader with UW-Whitewater has been canceled. The Lawrence Spring Invitational golf tournament scheduled for Saturday, April 23, has been postponed. Lawrence’s baseball doubleheader with St. Norbert College, which was scheduled for Thursday, April 21, has been moved to Monday, April 25.

Inside LU Athletics: Gurholt continues to power Vikings

After Lawrence University shortstop Carli Gurholt blasted a foul ball out of the park last Sunday at the University of Chicago, Maroons coach Ruth Kmak breathed a noticeable sigh of relief.

The relief didn’t last long.

Two pitches later, Gurholt hit a grand slam that broke Lawrence’s career home run record. A native of tiny Scandinavia in central Wisconsin, Gurholt has battled through injury the past two seasons but the senior has become one of the most prolific hitters in Lawrence history.

“She threw me an off-speed inside pitch and I cranked it foul,” said Gurholt, who now has 22 career homers and 106 runs batted in.

“It was an 0-2 count. I was protecting the plate. I consider myself more of an aggressive hitter. If they screw up and pitch it to me, I’ll hit it.”

Gurholt, who has been hampered by an injury to her non-throwing arm, is leading the team with a .453 batting average to go along with 11 doubles, one triple, three homers and 23 RBI.

“I was going into the season thinking I was going to be a defensive player,” said Gurholt, who was hurt initially last season and decided to play through the pain this year.

“I didn’t have any offensive expectations of myself. It’s a huge surprise that I can play and hit.”

Lawrence coach Kim Tatro said she was concerned at how limited the 2009 Midwest Conference North Division Player of the Year was going to be this season.

“Am I surprised? Yes, but I’m thrilled. She’s far exceeded what we thought she was going to be able to do this year,” Tatro said.

“Early in the season, we went in with the mindset she wouldn’t hit at all.”

Tatro said the coaching staff has tried to be smart in how much Gurholt practices and even limiting her game time here and there. That’s tough for a player like Gurholt, who thrives on taking the field every day.

“Carli is a perfectionist and is the type of kid who loves practice and loves repetitions,” Tatro said.

“She doesn’t have a 75 percent switch. When she takes the field she goes all out. She’s going to dive for a ball in practice, and I can’t stop her from doing that.”

A career .392 hitter, Gurholt has learned from this experience that she can rely on all the work she has put in through the years.

“It makes me feel better if I practice and practice my swing. I just have to trust myself.  Those thousands of swings I’ve taken off the tee, I have to trust that,” Gurholt said.

“This injury has taught me to be more selective. I haven’t been able to see the ball quite this well before. I’ve been more disciplined. I think I’m using that to my benefit.”

“I’m really confident with her ability to have a quality at-bat,” Tatro said. “That’s plus for us and led to her success. It’s what makes her great.

She kind of thinks like a coach, and I’ve told her this before. She has a keen sense of awareness in many phases of the game that most college players don’t have.”

Gurholt has been pretty selective, drawing a team-high 15 walks in 23 games and has a sparkling .586 on-base percentage.

Gurholt knows patience, both for her and this pretty young Vikings team, will be a key as they drive toward a spot in the four-team Midwest Conference Tournament. She believes the team’s continued offensive improvement will be a key in the final weeks of the regular season.

“If we can focus on hitting good pitches and go up there ready to hit the ball, then we have a chance,” Gurholt said.

Wind knocks down Stevens

Sophomore Sam Stevens was on pace to post a provisional qualifying time for the NCAA Division III Championships in the 800 meters this past Sunday at the Wisconsin Lutheran Relays, and then he turned for home. Right into the teeth of a 25 mile per hour wind.

Stevens won the event but finished in 1:58.78, but needs to shave a little more than six seconds off that time to be a provisional qualifier.

Tepper tops the list

Sophomore Rose Tepper also won at the Wisconsin Lutheran Relays, taking first in the high jump with a leap of 5 feet, 4.25 inches. That is the best jump in the conference thus far this season.

Tepper, a NCAA Championships qualifier during the indoor season, needs a jump of 5-5 to provisionally qualify for the outdoor meet.

Editor’s Note: Inside LU Athletics is a weekly notes package written by Lawrence University Sports Information Director Joe Vanden Acker. It will feature teams and individual players, recap weekly awards or highlights and take a look at what’s ahead for the Vikings.

Elmhurst shuts out Lawrence

CHICAGO, Ill. — Julie Devine drove in six runs to lead the Elmhurst College softball team to a 12-0 nonconference victory over Lawrence University on Sunday at the University of Chicago’s Stagg Field.

Elmhurst (10-17) jumped on the Vikings early. The Bluejays scored four times in the first, and Devine had a three-run double in the inning.

Elmhurst then pulled away by scoring seven times in the second. Devine belted a three-run homer in the second.

Lindsay Nauman went the distance for Elmhurst. She allowed three hits, struck out six and walked five.

Emily Perish took the loss for Lawrence (10-13). She gave up 11 hits and walked four.

Gurholt belts grand slam but Vikings fall to Chicago

CHICAGO, Ill. — Carli Gurholt blasted a grand slam in the seventh inning, but the Lawrence University softball team dropped a 6-4 nonconference decision to the University of Chicago on Sunday at Stagg Field.

Chicago (17-8) scored five times in the first and led 6-0 heading into the top of the seventh.

Lawrence (10-12) loaded the bases in the seventh on a fielder’s choice and a pair of singles. Gurholt then smacked a two-out grand slam to cut the lead to 6-4 but that’s where the rally ended.

Cathy Kaye and Alissa Geipel, who were both aboard when Gurholt homered, both went 2-for-4 to pace the Vikings.

Sarah Neuhaus went the distance for Chicago and allowed eight hits while striking out seven and walking two. Shannon Murray pitched the entire game for Lawrence and took the loss.

Sunday’s softball schedule shuffled

The Lawrence University softball team saw its doubleheader on Saturday postponed at the University of Chicago. The Vikings have altered their schedule for Sunday.

Lawrence will now play Chicago in a single game at noon. The Vikings will then play Elmhurst College at 2 p.m. Both game will be at the University of Chicago’s Stagg Field.