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March 8, 2008 Lutes Split Softball Twinbill with Whitworth
PARKLAND – Pacific Lutheran and Whitworth split a Northwest Conference softball doubleheader on Saturday, the visiting Pirates winning 5-4 in the opener before the Lutes came back to win the nightcap, 8-4. Whitworth took advantage of sloppy PLU fielding to win the opener as the Lutes committed three errors that led to four of the Pirates’ five runs being unearned. In addition, the Lutes collected 13 hits but failed several times in key at bats, leading to 10 stranded base runners. The Pirates scored a run in the first inning when Halley Cey was hit by a pitch and then lifted from the game for pinch runner Carrie Gibson. Lacey Parry moved Gibson to second with a sacrifice bunt and Lacey Kerr followed with an RBI single. Pacific Lutheran took a 3-1 lead in the second inning, making the most of four hits and a Whitworth error. Rachel Wheeler-Hoyt, Lisa Gilbert and Vanessa Bryant collected consecutive singles to start the inning. After Carly Starke lined out to left field, Stephanie Mullen hit a double off the base of the leftfield fence to drive in two runs. Bryant scored the third run on a two-out Whitworth fielding error. Whitworth regained the lead with a four-run fifth inning, aided by a pair of PLU miscues. Kerr hit a single to drive in the first run, and with two outs Josie Ball launched her first homer of the season, a three-run blast to right center, to put the Pirates on top 5-3. The Lutes scored a run in the sixth on Bryant’s leadoff homer, her third round-tripper of the season, but they left two runners on in that inning and three more in the bottom of the seventh. Jessie LaPlante picked up the pitching win, her second against three defeats, despite allowing 13 hits while walking one and striking out none. Hadley Schmitt was the hard-luck loser, allowing only one earned run among five while also giving up five hits, walking no one and striking out four. In the second game, the Lutes scored a run in the first and five more in the second to pull away early. A three-run homer by Whitworth’s Parry made is 6-3 in the third, and the Pirates added another in the sixth on a double and an error, but the Lutes scored twice in the bottom of the sixth to put the game away. The Lutes got on the board with an unearned run in the first inning, then collected some clutch hits in the second. Heather Walling drove in the first run with a single, and with two outs Lisa Gilbert clubbed a long double to center to drive in three runners. Gilbert later scored on pitcher Kelsey Ayers’ second throwing error of the game. PLU’s sixth inning runs came on a throwing error and Bryant’s RBI single. Wheeler-Hoyt picked up the pitching win to improve her record to 3-2. In 5 1/3 innings she allowed four runs, three earned, on six hits while walking none and striking out six. Schmitt worked the final 1 2/3 innings to get her first save of the season. Ayers was the losing pitcher and is now 0-3 for the season. Kerr collected four hits in the two games for Whitworth, while Bryant had four safeties for PLU in the doubleheader. Walling, Wheeler-Hoyt and Mullen each had three hits for the Lutes. The teams finish their four-game conference series on Sunday with a noon doubleheader. - PLU -
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