ELIZABETHTOWN, Ky. - Today the Calvin softball team wrapped up their appearance at the Pioneer Classic Tournament with games against Defiance and Wartburg.

GAME 1
CALVIN 8, DEFIANCE 0

The Knights started their day by taking on the Yellow Jackets of Defiance College where they got things started right away when Aubrey Herder (Kalamazoo, Mich./Kalamazoo Christian) doubled in the bottom of the first inning. After advancing to third on a wild pitch Emilie Gist (Bettendorf, Iowa/Bettendorf) put the ball in play and forced the Defiance defense to make a fielder's choice, allowing Herder to be safe at home.

In the second inning Emma Walker (Hamilton, Mich./Saugatuck) took a free base on a walk followed by Emily Sweetland (Ann Arbor, Mich./Saline) who singled to left field. Both runners advanced by stealing a base before Lily Gaastra (Grand Rapids, Mich./Grand Rapids Christian) beat out a bunt to load the bases for the Knights. A few plays later Calvin took advantage of some fielding errors as both Walker and Sweetland crossed the plate after a wild pitch to extend the lead to 3-0.

The Knights took advantage of the early momentum they had created when sophomore Carly Dole (Mt. Pleasant, Mich./Mt. Pleasant) led off the bottom of the third inning where she beat out a bunt to give Calvin a baserunner. Another defensive error from the Yellow Jackets put Dole on third and Gist on first before Taylor Sanborn (Midland, Mich./Midland) put the ball in play to give Calvin its first run of the inning. The Knights kept things rolling when Tory Decker (Hudsonville, Mich./Unity Christian) singled to right field to bring in Gist. A few plays later Calvin loaded the bases before two wild pitches in a row allowed two more Calvin runs to cross the plate and make the score 7-0.

Calvin rounded out their scoring and ended the game in the bottom of the sixth inning when sophomore Alania Garcia (Holt, Mich./Holt) singled through the left side to score Dole and give the Knights the 8-0 victory.

Zoe Hazelhoff (Kalamazoo, Mich./Kalamazoo Christian) commanded the circle for Calvin where she recorded five strikeouts while only giving up three hits. Offensively, Walker and Dole led the way as they each recorded two hits while Gist, Garcia, Sanborn, and Decker each had one RBI.

GAME 2
CALVIN 6, WARTBURG 7

In their second game of the day Calvin found themselves locked in an offensive battle with Wartburg. Wartburg struck fast and hard as they took a quick lead in the bottom of the first inning when they went up 4-0. In the top of the second inning Sanborn kicked things off for the Knights when she sent the ball back up the middle for a single. She was advanced to third after both Gist and Walker were hit by pitches before being brought in when Gaastra forced the Wartburg defense to make an error. 

Still looking to dig their way out of a hole, Calvin got back to work the next inning when Dole sent a sacrifice fly ball deep to right field to score Herder to make the score 2-4. The Knights continued to chip away in the top of the fourth when Sweetland found her way on base after watching four balls sail by. A few plays later a throwing error on the Wartburg catcher allowed Sweetland to cross the plate and bring Calvin within one.

Wartburg bounced back in the bottom of the fourth inning when they were able to push another run across the plate but Calvin went back to work in the top of the sixth when Sweetland once again found a way to get on base. She quickly advanced to third off of defensive errors before being brought home thanks to a single to left field from Herder. With runners on first and third, senior Ali Schultz (Wyoming, Mich./Grandville) stepped up and smacked a two run single to center field to make the score 6-5 and give Calvin their first lead of the game.

However, Wartburg refused to back down as they scored two runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to reclaim the lead and put all the pressure on the Knights heading into the final inning. Unfortunately, despite Decker and Walker getting on base, Calvin was unable to bring anyone home and the Knights fell 6-7.

Sophomore Brooke Hunderman (Grand Rapids, Mich./Calvin Christian) started in the circle for the Knights where she recorded two strikeouts before being relieved by Emma Ludema (Martin, Mich./Wayland) in the fifth inning.

COACHES COMMENT: "I thought we had a better competitive drive against Wartburg," said head coach Becky Hilgert. "When they took the lead early we did not panic and kept chipping away. I was really happy with the contributions and spark the bottom of the order provided us offensively today. Unfortunately, as a team we ate still making undisciplined mistakes on the bases that are costing us in key moments. Overall, this weekend was a good test for us and we just have to continue to work hard tro get better each opportunity that we can during practice."

UP NEXT: The Knights will be back in action on Wednesday, March 20th when they travel to Baldwin-Wallace to take on the Yellowjackets at 3 p.m.