By Jack Poleto
Sports Editor
Shorewomen softball traveled to Kissimmee, Fla. for spring break to play against several teams from across the country from March 12 to March 17.
Washington College’s first win came against the St. Scholastica Saints from Duluth, Minn. The Shorewomen were down until freshman Gracelyn Goforth hit a homerun in the fifth inning to tie the game up. They scored two more times in the inning, bringing the score to 6-4. Both teams scored one more run to give the Shorewomen the win.
Their second game of the break was against Westminster College from Pennsylvania where they lost 4-9. The Shorewomen put up three runs in the second inning, two of which came from a home run by freshman Jenna Harper. The final run for the Shorewomen came in the fourth inning with a homerun from sophomore Lilly Cook.
On Monday, March 13, the team played a doubleheader against ninth-ranked Bethel University from Minnesota. The Shorewomen lost the first game 8-0. The team’s only hits came from Harper and senior Alyssa Vieira.
The second game against Bethel was an extremely close loss. The Shorewomen scored four runs, while their opponents scored five. After the second inning, the team was down one run. In the third inning, Vieira hit a single that drove Cook home, tying the game.
Later that inning, sophomore Chloe Trefz recorded a hit that allowed Vieira to score, bringing the score to 3-2 with the Shorewomen winning. Bethel brought it back in the fourth inning with a hit to tie the game.
During Trefz’s next at-bat in the seventh inning, she drove in junior Hannah Solge, giving the Shorewomen the advantage heading into the bottom of the inning. Bethel drove in two more runs in their final inning to win the game, handing WC their third loss in Florida.
The Shorewomen’s next game was on Tuesday, March 14 against the Hamline University Pipers from Minnesota. The team lost this game 2-0 as the Pipers posted two runs through all seven innings. They had four hits through seven innings and were unable to get momentum going in their loss.
Their second game of the day was against Kenyon College from Ohio. The team recorded two runs in the first two innings with freshman Lilly Wenzel recording an RBI. Their second run came in the sixth inning, giving the Shorewomen their second win of the break with a score of 3-1.
On Thursday, March 16, the Shorewomen played against the Arcadia University Knights from Pennsylvania. The Knights won the game after WC sent the game to extra innings in the seventh with a double from senior Lexie Witmer. Unfortunately for the Shorewomen, the Knights scored two runs in the ninth while the Shorewomen could only put up one run.
The team then played the North Park University Vikings from Chicago, Ill. After an active first inning, the Shorewomen were down early with the Vikings holding the lead 5-3. By the fourth inning, WC was still down six runs with a score of 13-7.
The Shorewomen came alive in the sixth inning with several hits from members of the team. With the score tied at 13-13, Vieira hit a single to left field that drove Harper home, giving the Shorewomen the lead for the first time since the first inning.
The Vikings scored a run in the bottom of the sixth, tying the game once again. In the seventh inning, freshman Dee Raffaelli hit a single up the middle that pushed sophomore Maddy Kendall to score, giving the Shorewomen a high scoring win 15-14.
The Shorewomen played their final games in Florida on March 17. Their first was against the University of New England Nor’easters from Maine. The team won in dominating fashion with a score of 20-5 through five innings. The Shorewomen recorded 18 hits and 17 RBI’s that allowed them to blow out the Nor’easters.
The Shorewomen’s final game over break was a rematch against the Hamline Pipers. Witmer opened the game up with a solo homerun, her next at-bat allowed the Shorewomen to score again with a double in the third inning. Freshman Jules Weglarz hit a home run in the fifth inning that drove Goforth and freshman Becca Foulk to score as well. The team scored twice more in the remainder of the game, allowing the Shorewomen to win 7-3.
The women’s softball team begins Centennial Conference play on Saturday, April 1 with a doubleheader away against Ursinus College.
Photo courtesy of WC Athletics.
Photo Caption: Shorewoman of the week Hannah Solge during an at-bat in a home game.