ST. MARY-OF-THE-WOODS, Ind. – For the St. Mary-of-the-Woods softball team, it was a pair of wins against visiting Oakland City in River States Conference action – both by the score of 6-2 – but for junior
Emily Fitzwater it was an opening game victory against her former team on a chilly Friday afternoon at the SMWC Softball Field.
The Woods improved to 14-8, 7-3 RSC while Oakland City fell to 15-11, 6-4 RSC. SMWC is now on a 10-game winning streak with the two wins.
Fitzwater, a native of Covington, Ind., a graduate of North Vermillion High School, started the first game for the Pomeroys inside the circle and pitched 5.2 innings allowing just a pair of earned runs, eight hits and striking out two to earn the victory.
Marin Jacobs allowed just one hit over the final 1.1 innings of relief to pick up the save.
SMWC grabbed a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning when
Lyric Krause doubled to drive in
Jaselyn Conn. Oakland City would knot the game at 1 in the top of the second inning before Naveah Pender pushed
Jasmine Kinzer across the plate in the fourth for a 2-1 advantage. A
Hannah Boardman single later in the frame scored Pender and stretched the lead out to 3-1.
Krause singled to score Conn yet again in the fifth inning before Kinzer recorded a sacrifice fly which scored
Abby Broughton to make it 5-1. Fitzwater then was credited with a RBI on an infield ground out to score
Jaleigh Crawford for the 6-1 advantage. The Mighty Oaks added a run on an RBI double in the sixth inning before Jacobs closed the door for a 6-2 victory.
In the second game, Conn was credited with a sacrifice fly and a RBI to score
Abbi Henderson for the quick 1-0 lead. Pender would reach on a single in the second inning which scored Kinzer in the second to make it 2-0. OCU would get a run back in the third, but Conn answered with a home run to make it 3-1.
After the Mighty Oaks got within 3-2 in the fifth inning, Kinzer drilled her second home run of the season to score herself and Crawford which made it 5-2. Boardman singled to score Pender in the bottom of the sixth for the 6-2 lead which Jacobs made hold up to finish off the sweep.
Jacobs went the distance in the circle, allowing nine hits and only two earned runs with six strikeouts.
Kinzer finished the game 2-for-3 at the plate with a pair of RBI while Conn drove in a pair also and Penders was 2-of-3 at the dish with a RBI and a run scored.
Saint Mary-of-the-Woods returns to action on Saturday, March 23 when they host River States Conference foe Brescia for a pair of games beginning at 1 pm (ET).
