SYLVANIA, Ohio (LourdesAthletics.com) – The Lourdes University softball team held leads in both games on Tuesday afternoon but couldn't hold off the visiting Saints of Aquinas College, falling 5-3 and 8-4 in a Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference doubleheader at Gray Wolf Field.
Game One: Aquinas 5, Lourdes 3
The Gray Wolves came out swinging in the opener, plating three runs in the first inning. Maddie Darrah delivered an RBI single to bring home Alyssa Goretzka, and Taylor Leggins followed with a two-run double that scored Lindsey McGann and Darrah for a quick 3-0 lead.
Aquinas responded in the second, using three hits and a pair of RBI doubles to score four runs and take the lead. The Saints added an insurance run in the third to go up 5-3, which proved to be the final margin as Lourdes managed just one hit the rest of the way.
Robyn Ryan drew a walk and added a single, while Leggins recorded the team's only extra-base hit. On the mound, Mallori Bradley took the loss, allowing four runs on five hits in 1.2 innings of work. Berlynn Keller was effective in relief, giving up just one run over 5.1 innings.
Game Two: Aquinas 8, Lourdes 4
The second game followed a similar script, with Lourdes taking a 4-3 lead into the sixth before Aquinas stormed back late.
After the Saints scored in the second and twice in the fourth, Lourdes answered in the bottom half of the inning. Leggins singled up the middle to plate Jessyca Smith, and McGann followed with a bunt that turned into an RBI after an Aquinas throwing error.
In the fifth, Smith drove in a run with her third hit of the game, and Leggins doubled in another, giving Lourdes a 4-3 edge. But Aquinas tied it in the sixth and erupted for four runs in the seventh, highlighted by back-to-back home runs.
Leggins went 3-for-4 with two RBIs and a double to cap a strong day at the plate. Smith also collected three hits, drove in a run, and scored twice. Keller suffered the loss in relief, with Bradley closing out the game.
Up Next:
The Gray Wolves head to Fort Wayne, Ind., for a WHAC doubleheader against Indiana Tech University on Wednesday, April 16. The first game is scheduled for 3:30 p.m., followed by the second game at 5:30 p.m.
