SIOUX CITY, Iowa – Part I of a weekend GPAC road trip was a success for the Concordia University softball team. The Bulldogs blasted four home runs, including two by freshman Camry Moore, in a doubleheader sweep at Briar Cliff on Saturday (April 13). Concordia won by scores of 11-4 and 10-0 (five innings) while pounding Charger pitching to the tune of 22 combined hits.
Head coach Shawn Semler’s squad effectively bounced back from a pair of defeats Tuesday at Morningside. The Bulldogs (18-6, 7-3 GPAC) remain close to the top of the GPAC standings halfway through their conference schedule.
“It was a story of us really jumping out strong in that first inning,” Semler said. “And then your pitchers can just throw strikes. We had talked about Morningside and where we thought we were. I think the girls handled it well. You have to come back from it. They want to show people what they’re really made of. Their attitudes have been very positive. They want to show people that they’re very good in this conference.”
If Semler could have scripted the first inning of both games on Saturday, this was exactly what he would have wanted. Concordia put up eight runs in the first in game one and then five in the opening frame of game two. Tori Homolka collected two hits in the first inning of game one with the big blow being her grand slam. In that contest, Homolka went 3-for-4 with five RBIs. Multiple hits were also delivered in game one by Moore (3-for-4), Hhana Haro (2-for-5) and Jenessa Jarvis (2-for-5).
Moore has been a solid hitter all season, but this was the first time she really flashed a power bat as a collegiate player. She went 5-for-7 on the day with a two-run homer in the first and fourth innings of game two. They were the first two homers of Moore’s career.
“We’ve talked about how good of a hitter she is,” Semler said. “She has to go up there and hit the ball like she knows she can. It was fun to watch her break out. You could just see her almost exhale that she’s back and driving the ball well.”
Fellow freshman Kylee Nixon also connected for a two-run homer in the fifth inning of game two. Nixon went 2-for-3 with two runs and two RBIs. Meanwhile, Haro just keeps on hitting. She added two more knocks in the second game. As part of the five-run first, Haro belted a two-run double.
Semler used the same pitching arrangement as he has all season with Moore working game one and senior Brittany Woolridge taking game two. Moore covered 6.2 innings and allowed only one run on three hits. Woolridge then tossed a five-inning, two-hit shutout to move her season record to 9-1.
Briar Cliff (7-22, 2-12 GPAC) has now dropped 10 GPAC games in a row. The Chargers managed to avoid a run rule loss in game one by scoring three runs in the bottom of the fifth. Briar Cliff has a new coach this season, Erin Bly.
The location for Sunday’s doubleheader against Mount Marty (17-17, 8-6 GPAC) has been changed. It is now scheduled to be played at Sya Riverside Sports Complex in Sioux City, Iowa, with the first pitch at 1 p.m. CT.