March 6, 2013 - The Concordia Cougar softball team resumed play today after a day off with games against Alvernia University of Pennsylvania and Catholic University of Washington D.C. Unfortunately, one big inning in each game came back to haunt the Cougars as they fell 11-5 to Alvernia and 10-1 to Catholic.
In the early game against Alvernia, the Crusaders scored three runs in the first, but the Cougars evened the score in the second.
Sarah James (Riverside, IL/Riverside-Brookfield) and
Andrea Kelly (Elk Grove, IL/Laguna Creek) singled, and James scored the first run on a passed ball. One out later,
Hannah Solyom (Lombard, IL/Walther Lutheran) doubled to center, bringing home Kelly. Solyom then scored on an error by Alvernia's shortstop, tying the game at 3-3.
Alvernia regained the lead with a single run in the second, and the game remained 4-3 until the fifth. Two errors put runners on third and second, and James' single knotted the game,
Jenni Jensen (Chicago, IL/Luther North) followed with a base hit as Concordia took a 5-4 lead.
The lead did not last long as the Crusaders answered in their half of the fifth with seven runs on six hits and two errors. Rachel Fritz provided the big blow of the inning, a three-run homer with two out. The Cougars were unable to come back as the Crusaders held on to improve to 5-0 on the season.
In the second game against Catholic, the Cardinals hit the Cougars with an eight-run third inning. Rose Shaver's two-run single jump-started the Cardinals' offense. Her hit was followed by an RBI single by Taylor Stockinger and a run-scoring double by Nina Cueto. In all, Catholic amassed seven hits in the inning to roll up an 8-0 lead.
Concordia got on the board in the third as
Caitlin Richards (Chicago, IL/Mother McAuley) and
Olivia Hires (Denver, CO/Bear Creek) singled to put runners on the corners.
Meghan Johnson's (Glendale Heights, IL/Glenbard West) infield grounder scored Richards and moved Hires to second. However, the Cardinals' pitcher got the next two outs to strand Hires and leave the score at 8-1. Stockinger's two-run homer in the bottom of the inning closed out the scoring for the game.
The Cougars (2-4) will look to bounce back on Thursday when they play Simpson College of Iowa and Muskingum University of Ohio.
