OMAHA, Neb. – In the tale of two games, Omaha softball split its Summit League doubleheader against South Dakota State on Saturday at Westside Field at Westbrook. The Mavericks opened the pair of games with a 14-5 victory in five innings, but dropped the second contest 3-1.
The Mavericks are now 19-21 overall and 6-1 in Summit League play. The Jackrabbits are 14-23 on the season and 2-3 in league play.
Omaha and South Dakota State will play the final game of the three-game set on Sunday starting at 11 a.m.
Game One: Omaha 14 South Dakota State 5 (5 innings)
It looked as if South Dakota State would walk away with the series opener as the Jackrabbits jumped out to a 5-0 lead after 2 ½ innings. The Omaha offense responded with 14 runs over the next 2 ½ innings for the win.
South Dakota State took advantage of two walks and a hit in the top of the second to grab a 1-0 lead. Two of the first three Jackrabbit batters reached on walks before an Erin Mullen single would score the game's first run.
SDSU would add four more runs in the top of the third. Devan Larsen hit a one out home run to make the score 2-0. Walks would come back and hurt Omaha for the second straight inning as the next two Jackrabbit batters reached base. Abbey Murphy reached on an infield hit that allowed the second run of the inning to score. Lyndsey Crist hit a single to center field to plate two more as South Dakota State increased its lead to 5-0.
Omaha's bats came to life in the bottom of the inning. Nicole Warren hit a two-run home run to right center field to get Omaha on the board. Lizzie Noble hit an RBI single to center to score Campbell Ditto. Alexis Parker and Lia Mancuso each drew bases loaded walks to make the score 5-5 after three innings.
Ditto gave the Mavericks the lead with a one-out homer to left center field in the fourth. Noble and Kourtney Pock hit back-to-back singles. Bailey Schulenberg hit the third consecutive single for the Mavs to bring home Pock. On the play, Noble also came in to score and Schulenberg moved to third on an error by SDSU. Kelly Pattison lifted a sacrifice fly to right field that allowed Schulenberg to score and gave Omaha a 9-5 lead after four innings.
The Omaha offense went right back to work in the bottom of the fifth. Warren and Sydney Hames led off the inning with back-to-back singles. Ditto singled allowing Hames to advance to third and Warren to score. Pock singled through the left side to load the bases for Omaha. Noble drew a bases loaded walk to drive in Hames. Schulenberg hit a fly ball to left field for the first out of the inning. Ditto was thrown out at home trying to score on the play. Pattison ended the game by hitting a three-run homer over the left field wall.
Pattison led the Mavericks offense by driving in four runs. Ditto went 3-for-4 at the plate with a triple and a home run while driving in two. Warren went 2-for-4 with a homer, two runs scored, and two RBI. Noble went 2-for-3 with two RBI. Mancuso, Parker, and Schulenberg each had an RBI in the win.
Laura Roecker earned the victory by pitching a complete game and is 10-9 on the season. Roecker allowed five runs on four hits while walking five and striking out five.
Game Two: South Dakota State 3 Omaha 1
Omaha jumped out to an early lead, but South Dakota State scored twice in the sixth inning and added another in the seventh for a 3-1 win.
Kourtney Pock led off the bottom of the second with a double, but was thrown out at third base as Lizzie Noble reached on a fielder's choice. Kelly Pattison reached on an error that allowed Noble to move to second. Tara Trede singled on a 2-1 count that scored Noble, but saw Pattison thrown out trying to advance to third.
South Dakota State struck for two runs in the top of the sixth. Ali Herdliska opened the inning with a single to right field. Katie Lang pinch ran for Herdliska and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt. Lyndsey Crist singled to move Lang to third. Jordyn Sturgeon singled to center allowing Lang to score and Crist to move to third. Erin Mullen gave the Jackrabbits the lead with a sacrifice fly to right.
Devan Larson hit a 1-0 offering over the left field wall to give SDSU an insurance run in the top of the seventh.
Omaha loaded the bases in the bottom of the seventh. Megan May hit a one out single and moved to second when Lia Mancuso walked. Nicole Warren singled off the South Dakota State pitcher to load the bases. May was thrown out at home when Sydney Hames hit into a fielder's choice. Campbell Ditto hit a line drive to left center field, but the SDSU centerfielder was able to track down the ball and record the final out.
Warren went 3-for-3 with a walk for Omaha, while Pock went 1-for-3 with a double. Trede was 1-for-1 with an RBI.
Abbie Clanton pitched 6 1/3 innings allowing three runs on seven hits with three walks and four strikeouts. Clanton took the loss and is 7-8 on the season. Laura Roecker pitched the final 2/3 of an inning allowing no runs and walking one.
