Bulldogs swept in opening doubleheader of California tour
Head coach Frank Greene’s Bulldog softball squad began its spring break tour of California with a pair of losses at Holy Names University on Friday. The host Hawks won by scores of 5-4 and 12-4 over Concordia in Hayward, Calif. The Bulldogs (2-3) will play three more doubleheaders between now and March 13 before leaving the Golden State.
In game one, Concordia took a 2-0 lead after two innings and held a 3-2 lead as late as the bottom of the sixth. That’s when Holy Names struck for three runs with the big blow being a two-run triple by the Hawks’ Alexis Moctezuma that gave them the lead.
The Bulldogs made some noise in the top of the seventh when Angela Harstad singled in Natalie Svoboda, who had tripled to lead off the inning. However, Harstad never moved from first base as the next three hitters were retired in order.
Junior right-hander Amanda Beeson took the game one loss, her second of the season in three starts, after tossing a six-inning complete game. She allowed four earned runs on nine hits and two walks while striking out six.
At the plate, both Svoboda (3-for-4) and Molly Madsen (2-for-4) struck for multiple hits as part of a 10-hit attack in game one. Svoboda scored two of the team’s four runs.
Game two was won decisively by the Hawks (5-21), who added a run in the bottom half of the sixth to invoke the eight-run rule. Holy Names tagged freshman starting pitcher Julie Tyree for 13 hits in 3.2 innings. Her record dropped to 2-1.
Freshman Danielle Harstad shined at the plate in game two with a 3-for-3 day that included an RBI. Nicole Mapes went 2-for-3 with a run and an RBI.
Svoboda ended up 4-for-7 on the day, continuing her red-hot start to the season. She is batting .471 (8-for-17) with a home run in five games in 2013.
Concordia will continue action in California on Saturday with a doubleheader at Menlo College (9-13) beginning at 1 p.m. CST. Both games will be played at Wunderlich Field in Atherton, Calif. The Oaks are 5-3 so far this season at home.