The North Central Missouri College softball team’s early April momentum was slowed by the powerhouse Crowder College Lady ‘Riders on Saturday afternoon, with Crowder taking a doubleheader sweep at Mark Griffin Memorial Field, winning by scores of 8-5 and 7-1.
In the first game, Crowder broke open a 1-1 score of five runs in the top of the 2nd inning against Lady Pirates starter Allison Hilsabeck. Down 8-1 through 3 1/2 innings, the Lady Pirates had a spirited comeback, scoring one run in the 4th and 6th inning, and two more of the bottom of the 7th, before running out of outs.
Leadoff hitter Oakley Sisemore was a thorn in the Lady Pirates side, going 3-for-4 with 3 RBI’s and three runs scored, including a triple and a stolen base. Two-hole hitter Bailey Bunch was 2-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI. Emma Hill started the game and took the victory for Crowder, twirling a six-hitter over seven innings.
For the Lady Pirates, Rachael Balke was 2-for-4 with 2 RBI’s, while third baseman Jaclyn Weydert scored two runs. Left-fielder Kelly Warford was 1-for-2 with an RBI and a stolen base. Hilsabeck took the loss, dropping to 10-6 on the season.
In Game 2, the Lady Pirates took a 1-0 lead after two innings, but Aubrey Nelson driving in Balke in the bottom of the 2nd inning, but that would be the “high water mark” for North Central, as the Lady ‘Riders tallied three runs in the 3rd and 6th innings, and a single tally in the 7th, in a 7-1 road win. Sisemore added two more hits and scored twice for Crowder, with first baseman Kenzi Spurgin going 2-for-3 with a double and 3 RBI’s.
For the North Central offense, in picking up eight hits against winning pitcher Maddie Massanelli, McKinley Hurley was 2-for-3 and Balke 2-for-3. Warford, a native of Pattonsburg, was 1-for-3 with the bat, and pitched 4 1/3 innings in relief of starter Jessica Stupar, giving up four runs on seven hits. All four runs were unearned, as North Central committed three errors in the loss. Stupar went the first 2 2/3 innings and took the loss, falling to 7-5 on the spring season.
On Sunday afternoon, North Central traveled to St. Charles Community College for a pair of games against their Region XVI rival. The weekend struggles continued for the Lady Pirates in the opener, a 5-3 loss. St. Charles tipped the scales in their favor with a three run rally in the 4th inning, flipping over a 3-2 NCMC lead heading into the frame.
Warford pitched a complete game five hitter for the Lady Pirates, and was hurt by faulty defense, as five NCMC errors led to the five St. Charles runs, all unearned, dropping Warford’s season record to 2-1. She struck out eight batters and walked four. Avery Dickson scattered eight North Central hits over five innings to earn the win, improving to 4-7. Maggie Groshong pitched two hitless innings for St. Charles to earn the save.
Weydert was 2-for-4 (both doubles) with a pair of RBI’s for the Lady Pirates, with Georgia Gibler adding two hits, including a double, and an RBI. McKinley Hurley and Bethany Jacobsen scored runs, along with Weydert, for the Lady Pirates, who lost a 2-0 advantage after the top of the 1st inning.
While the weekend itself was disappointing for the Lady Pirates, the final six innings of Sunday’s second game may end up being one of the most important stretches of the season for NCMC. Down 3-0 after the first inning, Hilsabeck slammed the door on St. Charles, holding the home team scoreless after the 1st, while the Lady Pirates rallied with a run in the 3rd, 3 in the 5th to take the lead, and two more runs in the 6th for valuable insurance, in a 6-3 road win.
Hurley had three stolen bases and scored three runs for the Lday Pirates, while Jacobsen, Gibler, and Balke all had two hits. Warford scored a run in a 1-for-2 game, while drawing two walks. Hilsabeck earned the victory to improve to 11-6 on the season. Nicole Schollmeyer took the loss, falling to 2-6 on the campaign.
The Lady Pirates headed west on Interstate 70 after Sunday’s doubleheader, stopping in Fulton, where a “neutral-site” doubleheader against Three Rivers Community College will be played this (Monday) afternoon at 1 o’clock on the campus of Westminster College.
