Softball Win Streak Hits Four With Wins Over Kenyon and Curry

Photo Madi Wellendorf
Photo Madi Wellendorf

PHOTOS - KENYON

PHOTOS - CURRY

FORT MYERS, Florida – For the second consecutive day, the Wilmington College softball team swept a pair of games as the Fightin' Quakers defeated Kenyon College 3-1 and Curry College (Massachusetts) 8-2 on Tuesday.

In the victory over Kenyon (10-3), Wilmington's offense put together 15 hits, but also left 15 runners on base in the game. The Fightin' Quakers did score early, however, as KenDahl Bowles hit an RBI-single up the middle that scored Megan Crager and Allison Pierce scored on a Lady error. Kenyon got one of those runs back on a double in the second, but starter Alexis Stringfellow, making her first collegiate start, sat down the Ladies in order in the third, fourth and fifth innings. Wilmington would get a runner in scoring position in each of those innings including the bases loaded in the fifth, but scored just a single run on an error in the fourth.

Stringfelllow continued to sit Kenyon hitters down in the sixth, but the Ladies mounted a two-out rally in the bottom of the seventh as runners were on first and second after a walk. Grace Shell entered the game to record the rare one-out save as the sophomore induced a pop out to third to give the Quakers a win.

Stringfellow earned the win pitching all but one out allowing three hits with three walks. Austen Whibley, who was 5-0 on the season entering the game, took her first loss allowing 11 hits and one earned run in four innings of work.

Mariyah Burkhardt and Hayley Suchland finished with three-hit games for Wilmington offensively in game that 8-of-9 starters tallied a base hit. Alecia Kemp, Micalah Hensley and Bowles also had multi-hit games.

Brittny Patterson, Nicole Bishay and Bella Albrecht all had a hit for Kenyon in defeat.

In triumph over Curry, each team mustered one hit through three innings, but Colonels got on the board twice using a two-out Wilmington error in the top of the fourth. Not to be undone, the Quakers answered right back with an RBI-single from Burkhardt that scored Kemp and a bases loaded walk drawn by Bowles. Wilmington looked to take the lead with the bases loaded and no outs, but consecutive flyouts to shallow center field followed by a pop out to shortstop ended the fourth with the game tied.

The very next inning, the Quakers loaded the bases with no outs as Megan Crager, Kemp and Burkhardt all singled. This time, Wilmington delivered as Pierce launched a double to left center that plated two runs. An RBI-groundout from Jillia Cook and an RBI-single from Bowles later and the Quakers led 6-2 after five complete.

Burkhardt added two more runs in the sixth with her third hit of the day, an RBI-single to left field.

Shell improved to 3-0 on the year has she scattered four hits with six strikeouts in the complete-game victory. Carrigan Costello earned the loss for Curry as she allowed five earned runs in four innings.

Burkhardt finished 3-for-4 with three RBIs and a run scored while Crager and Kemp both had two hits with two runs scored. Liana Duarte finished with two of Curry's five hits as a team.

Wilmington (5-1) faces Lesley College and Western Connecticut State University tomorrow (Wednesday) at 9 a.m and 11 a.m. respectively.