WATERTOWN, Wis. --Today at the Brandt-Quirk Park the Mount Mary University softball team swept the host Maranatha Baptist University Sabercats (1-17). The Blue Angels (4-14) won the first contest 16-6 in five innings, then took three second contest 18-6 in five innings.
Mount Mary grab the lead in the first inning without the courtesy of a hit. Amelia Flint (Sr./Whitefish Bay, Wis.) led things off for the Blue Angels when she reach by a walk. Following a hit-by-pitch and a pair of Sabercat errors, MMU took a 2-0 lead during the defensive miscues. Then expanded the lead to 3-0 after a walk and sacrifice fly by Nicole Krietemeyer (Fr./Fountain, Colo.).
The Sabercats responded in the bottom of the first inning with a single and an RBI double off the bat of Taylor Thome. Starting pitcher Adrianna Nester (So./Anaheim, Calif.) struck out the final batter of the inning to strand Thome at second.
After two quick outs to start the second inning for MMU, Hannah Harnsberger (So./Hillsboro, Ore.) laced the first of three consecutive Blue Angel base hits in the frame. After the four-run inning, MMU had a 7-1 lead.
The Sabercats responded in rivalry fashion in the bottom half of the third inning. A pair of hits to start the inning for MBU was quickly stifled when the Blue Angels got two quick outs. Then a two RBI triple turned into three runs after a misplayed ball by the Blue Angels making the score 7-4.
The Blue Angels came back in the top of the fourth inning to score three runs off of two doubles. The first RBI double was laced by Payton Hintz (Sr./Almond, Wis.) to left field, then Krietemeyer followed suit with another RBI double to left to make the score 10-4.
The Blue Angels opened up the score in the top half of the fifth inning when they batted around the order. 11 batters came to bat in the inning which produced six runs off of four hits and three Sabercat errors.
Nester received the win in game one and is now 2-7 on the year. She went 5.0 innings surrendering three earned runs off of eight hits and struck out seven batters.
Hintz led the offense in game one going 3-of-4 with a double and four RBIs.
Haley Jacquez (So./Oakley, Calif.) started the first inning of game two with a walk. The quick-footed infielder promptly swiped second base then advanced to third on a Harnsberger single to center field. Nester then followed up with a single up the middle to give MMU the 1-0 lead.
After a steal from Nester during the subsequent at-bat Flint grounded out for the RBI and a 2-0 lead for the Blue Angels.
MBU responded with back-to-back one-out singles in the bottom of the first. An error on catcher Amelia Flint resulted in the first run for the Sabercats, but starting pitcher Harnsberger forced a pop-out in foul territory on the next batter to get out of the jam.
After two walks to lead off the top of the third inning, Michaela Buchholz (So./Germantown, Wis.) sat back on an off-speed pitch that she deposited into left center for an RBI double. Flint then launched a deep shot to center field that was caught, but deep enough to score her teammate for the sacrifice fly. Two at-bats later, Krietemeyer hit another sacrifice fly to center field to make the score 5-1.
MBU turned around and loaded the bases with one out in the bottom of the third. The Blue Angels got a clutch groundball that Buchholz fired to home to get the second out. Sabercat Trisha Wrigh then hit a double to left field to score all three runners making the score 5-4.
When the Blue Angels added two more runs in the top of the fourth inning, their rivals again matched them in the Sabercats half of the fourth inning.
In the fifth inning, the bats exploded for the Blue Angels. 15 batters came to the plate in the top of the fifth. The unworldly output of offense resulted in 11 runs from five hits, three walks and two Sabercat errors. Payton Hintz recorded two hits in the inning, leading it off with a single and drilling a two-RBI double down the left field line in her second at-bat in the inning.
Nester came in the circle in the fifth inning to strike out two of the three batters and help the Blue Angels record their fourth win of the season. Harnsberger finished the game going 4.0 innings, giving up five earned runs off 11 hits while striking out two.
Both Flint and Harnsberger finished game two with three RBIs. Flint, Harnsberger and Hintz all finished the game going 2-of-3 from the plate.
After today, the Blue Angels will take on the Milwaukee School of Engineering (18-13) Thu. Apr. 26. First pitch for the doubleheader against the Raiders is set for 3:00 pm on the campus of MSOE. Live stats and audio can be found at mtmaryathletics.com.
