ROCKFORD, Ill. – The Mount Mary University softball team (4-13) dropped two games to host Rockford University (12-10). The Regents won the first game 3-1, then took game two 10-2 in six innings of play.
In game one, Haley Smalley (Jr./Columbus, Ind.) started at pitcher for the Blue Angels. Smalley gave up just one hit in the bottom half of the first inning to give the Blue Angels a chance to take a lead in the second inning.
Freshman shortstop Aislinn Strusz (Aurora, Ill.) led the top of the second inning off with a single right up the middle. Senior Amelia Flint (Whitefish Bay, Wis.) followed the leadoff single up with a single to right field which move Strusz to third with no outs.
After Karley Marcelina-Vega walked and loaded the bases for the Blue Angels, Haley Johnson (Jr./Germantown, Wis.) drilled a hard single to left field that scored Strusz from third, but got to the outfielder so quickly, it forced Flint to stay at third. Leading 1-0 and with no outs, the Blue Angels were retired on the next three batters to end the threat.
Smalley sat down the opposition 1-2-3 in the second, but ran into difficulties in the third. Rockford began the third reaching on a walk, then adding another runner with a single. A sacrifice bunt moved the runners over into scoring position with one out, then back-to-back singles by the Regents gave RU the 2-1 lead after three.
After the third inning, Smalley gave up just one more hit to the Regents. To open the fourth inning, Dylan King delivered a homerun to left center field to put RU up 3-1.
MMU could not add more runs in the final three innings to end the game 3-1. The Blue Angels outhit their opponents 7-5, Haley Smalley led the offensive charge going 2-of-4 from the plate with a double. Smalley was dealt the loss in the decision after going 6.0 innings in the circle surrendering three earned runs off five hits.
The Blue Angels again took an early lead in the second game of the day. With one out, Strusz drilled a triple down the right field line to put MMU in scoring position early. Adrianna Nester (Jr./Anaheim, Calif.) delivered the next at bat with a groundout RBI to the shortstop that put the Blue Angels up 1-0.
Hannah Harnsberger (Jr./Hillsboro, Ore.) started in the circle for game two for MMU. The Regents responded to the top of the first inning with back-to-back one-out doubles that tied the game. Harnsberger then struck out the next batter, but three consecutive two-out singles gave Rockford a 3-1 lead after the first inning.
The Regents added three more runs in the bottom of the second inning. The first run scored off a bases loaded wild pitch. After a walk, a bases loaded double by Dylan King scored two runs making the score 6-1.
In the top of the fourth inning, the Blue Angels tried to chip away at the deficit. The speedy Haley Jacquez (Jr./Oakley, Calif.) smacked a rare triple to left field with one out. Kirsten George (So./Fairborn, Ohio) then stepped in and laced her first RBI of the season with a hard single through the left side of the infield.
Nester relieved Harnsberger in the circle late in the fifth inning. In the sixth, the Regents were able to strike for four runs and force the run-rule. Only one of the four remaining runs for Rockford was earned.
Harnsberger was given the loss in the decision going 4.2 innings surrendering six runs, six earned runs off 11 hits. Nester was credited with 1.0 innings surrendering four runs, one earned run off four hits.
The Blue Angels collected seven hits as a team in the second contest. Nester led the way on offense going 2-of-3 from the dish with an RBI.
After today's doubleheader, the Blue Angels will return to action Sat. Apr. 13 against North Central College. MMU will again head to Illinois to take on the Cardinals for a two-game series beginning at 11:00 am. Radio coverage, live links and news can be found at MtMaryAthletics.com.
