SEWARD, Neb. – From the perspective of the Concordia University softball team, the first nine innings of Friday (April 5)’s doubleheader were quite miserable, to be frank. At that point in the day, the Bulldogs had been outscored 14-1 and managed just a single hit. As it turned out, Concordia just needed a little spark. It came in the fourth inning of game two and allowed the Bulldogs to salvage a split in their first home game day of the season. They followed an 11-1 loss (six innings) in game one with a 12-7 victory in game two while up against Jamestown.
The defeat in game one snapped a 12-game win streak, Concordia’s longest since 2008. Head coach Shawn Semler’s squad is now 14-4 overall and 3-1 in league play.
“Game one was really bad. We didn’t do anything right,” Semler said. “I was proud of the girls for climbing back into that (second) game. We talked to them about letting the first game go and get a split. Honestly, it takes one or two kids to hit the ball hard and it kind of gets contagious.”
Some sort of fever swept through the Bulldog dugout, in a good way, during the nine-run frame of game two. The outburst that featured seven hits, two walks and a Jimmie error transformed a 4-0 deficit into a 9-0 lead. It was a stunning turnaround after Concordia had been no-hit by Kat Miska in the six-inning, run rule loss to start the afternoon.
The fourth-inning merry-go-round got started when Hhana Haro took a leadoff walk and was aided by an error on a comebacker to the pitcher. Suddenly, the Bulldogs could not be stopped. Run scoring hits were supplied by Savannah Robertson (twice in the inning), Leah Kalkwarf, Jadyn Lindgren, Tori Homolka, MacKinsey Schmidt and Haro. Homolka’s two-run double gave the Bulldogs a 6-4 lead.
Robertson, a transfer from Northeast Community College, played a major role in turning the frown upside down. In game two, she went 3-for-3 with two runs, a double, a walk and two RBIs.
“We talked about it in the huddle and we said that game’s done,” Robertson said of the attitude between games. “The only thing we can do now is move past it. I think we really did a good job of doing that even though they scored the first few innings. We pushed back.”
Jamestown (21-9, 5-3 GPAC) have been ranked in the top 25 this season and continue to receive votes. There were stretches during which it seemed like every time the Jimmies put their bat to the ball, it found a hole. Spurred by leadoff hitter Mikayla Frost (7-for-9 on the day), Jamestown cranked out 16 hits in both ends of the twin bill. Miska was terrific in the circle in game one. She scattered five walks and struck out 10 in the no-hitter.
It was no easy task to take on the Jimmies after more than a week between games. The Bulldogs had not played since a doubleheader sweep of Doane on March 27.
“It really scared me to come from that layoff and try to play these guys, who will work you over in a lot of ways,” Semler said. “They bunted, they hit the ball hard, they moved runners over and they stole bases. Coming back tomorrow I’m just hoping our pitching staff can heal in time and throw well.”
Senior Brittany Woolridge pushed her record to 7-0, but not a lot came easy on this day. After taking the loss in game one, Camry Moore earned the save in game two. She was much sharper in a relief role.
Homolka went 0-for-2 with a walk in game one, but then notched three hits in game two. Eight Bulldogs had at least one hit in the capper. Lindgren produced a clutch two-run, pinch-hit single.
Concordia will complete its weekend on Saturday by hosting Dakota Wesleyan (7-21, 2-6 GPAC). First pitch has been moved up to 11 a.m. to avoid potential rain later in the day.