Saint Xavier Photo Gallery

Lourdes opened its 2017 season in thrilling fashion on Sunday, upsetting second-ranked Saint Xavier 4-3 in its final at bat before suffering an 11-4 setback to Hannibal-LaGrange at the Minneola Complex in Clermont, Fla.
 
In the opener against the defending national runner-up Cougars, Lourdes battle back from a 3-2 deficit entering the bottom of the seventh.  With one out Taylor Tafelski (Perrysburg, Ohio/Perrysburg H.S.) beat out an infield hit to shortstop in a pinch-hitting role.  After Meghan Birr (Muskegon, Mich./Mona Shores H.S.) reentered the lineup to run, Birr stole second and scored on an infield single Taylor Genzman (Saint Clair Shores, Mich./Lakeview H.S.) to tie the game.  With two outs, Olivia Stanton (Loveland, Ohio/Loveland H.S.) hit a ground ball to short.  She was originally called out at first, but the ruling was overturned by the home plate umpire as the first baseman was pulled off of the bag.  Genzman scored the winning tally on the play, giving the Gray Wolves their first victory over a NAIA top-25 opponent in program history.
 
"This was a great team win," head coach Jo Ann Gordon said following the opener.  "We showed a lot of poise.  I thought we did a nice job of putting pressure on their defense.  I think our speed on the bases flustered them at the end and forced them to rush plays."
 
Saint Xavier (3-3) scored first, plating a run in the opening inning on two doubles and a single.  Brooke Gallaher (Oregon, Ohio/Clay H.S.) allowed two more hits in the second, but stranded both runners in scoring position, and would not allow another hit until the seventh.
 
Erica Marvaso (Huron Township, Mich./Woodhaven H.S.) reached on an error to open the third and Genzman followed with a one out single.  Kayla Encalado (Walbridge, Ohio/Lake H.S.) reached on a fielder's choice, with Marvaso sliding in safely to third, loading the bases.  Stanton put the Gray Wolves in front delivering a two-run single up the middle.
 
Lourdes maintained its lead until the seventh when the Cougars rallied with a two-run double by Tori Williams, setting the stage for the last inning heroics by the Gray Wolves.
 
Gallaher earned the complete game win (1-0), scattering eight hits while striking out three and walking three.  Amanda Ruskowsky suffered the loss (1-2) for the Cougars, giving up two earned runs while going the distance.  She allowed five hits, walked two, and struck out five.
 
"Brooke really settled down after the first inning and kept their batters off balance," Gordon added.
 
Genzman was the only Gray Wolf with two hits in the opener, while also scoring twice.
 
Facing Hannibal-LaGrange in the nightcap, the Gray Wolves fell behind early.  The Trojans plated a pair of unearned runs in the opening inning, taking advantage of three Lourdes errors and a pair of walks.
 
The Gray Wolves cut the deficit in half in the bottom of the first on a RBI groundout by Tafelski that scored Encalado.
 
Hannibal-LaGrange (3-3) added four more runs in the second on just two hits, taking advantage of two walks, a hit batter, and another error, before plating two more in the third to build an 8-1 lead.
 
Lourdes scored three in the bottom of the fifth, one on a run-scoring groundout by Gallaher and two more on a single by Tafelski.
 
The Trojans responded with three more runs in the sixth to close out the scoring.
 
Madison Ingram earned the win (2-0) in relief, pitching four innings while allowing three runs and three hits.  The Gray Wolves had just six hits total in the contest.
 
Marissa Kostick (Saint Charles, Mich./Saint Charles H.S.) suffered the loss, allowing eight runs, five of which were earned, in 2.1 innings of work.  She allowed just three hits but walked five while striking out one.
 
"We gave up way too many freebees," Gordon said of game two.  "We had no consistency in any of the three phases of the game."
 
Lourdes (1-1) returns to the diamond first thing on Monday morning for a pair of games at Hancock Park in Clermont.  First pitch against Cardinal Stritch is set for 8 a.m. before the Gray Wolves battle Bellevue at 10:30 a.m.