MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. (Duhawks.com) - The Loras College Softball team opened the 2015 season on Friday afternoon with a pair of games against the Wildcats of St. Catherine's in the Augsburg Dome. Game one was a defensive battle until the end when the Duhawks ended up on the wrong end of a 1-0 decision. In game two, Loras' comeback attempt fell short, 6-5. 

Quiet bats put the fate of game one into the hands of Loras' (0-2) defense.

After each team left runners on the base pads in the first two innings, the Wildcats were threatening in the third. Back-to-back bunts moved the go-ahead run to third with two outs and brought the Wildcats top hitter to the plate. 

With the pressure on senior pitcher Holly Klein and the Duhawks defense, senior catcher Nora Zerante settled in and called for pitch. A toss, perfectly framed by Zerante, sent the Wildcat batter down looking and ended the threat.

Freshman Savannah Fowler opened up the top of the sixth with the first hit of the day for Loras. A hard grounder to the left side, Fowler used her speed to beat out the throw. Unfortunately, the Duhawks bats stayed silent, stranding Fowler on second to keep the game scoreless.

St. Kate's opened the bottom half of the sixth with a single to left side before bunting the runner to second. With one out and the go-ahead run in scoring position, the Wildcats batter crushed a ball to center field. Sophomore Dani Stromert tracked down the ball, and fired a throw to the plate. A perfect throw from Stormert caught the runner in a pickle between third and home, allowing Zerante to freeze the runner before firing a throw to sophomore Cate Paulsen who laid down the tag.

The textbook play left a runner on second with two outs. Despite a ground ball of the bat of the next batter, the Duhawks throw was off the mark. The errant throw allowed the runner to come around from second, giving the Wildcats a 1-0 lead heading to the final inning. 

Unfortunately for the Duhawks, the bats remained silent in the seventh, dropping the game 1-0.

Loras crossed the plate first in game two, after senior Katie Serpico's rbi-single drove Stormert in for the 1-0 lead. 

Over the next three innings, the Wildcats took command. Scoring four runs in the fourth before adding one in the fifth and the sixth, Loras trailed 6-1 heading into the bottom of the seventh.

Looking for aggressiveness in the batter's box, head coach Ashley Winter utilized a few pinch hitters. Freshman Miranda Chapman led off the inning, driving the ball back at the pitcher. Using her wheels, Chapman beat out the throw, bringing life to the Duhawks' dugout. After Stromert was hit by a pitch, Fowler's bunt single loaded the bases for Serpico. 

Digging into the batter's box, Serpico took four straight balls, walking in the run and setting up junior Makaila Hasse. A grounder off the bat of Haase, pushed another run across and left runners on first and second after the fielder's choice. 

With two on and two out, freshman Bria Lenten stepped to the plate. Battling in her previous at bats, fouling off nearly a dozen pitches, Lenten drove the first pitch she saw to the fence. The deep single to left scored two, pulling the Duhawks within one. 

The timely piece of hitting brought about a pitching change. Returning to the pitcher that carried them to the lead, the Wildcats held a conference on the mound. The lengthy pause in play, allowed the excitement of Lenten's single to fade before bringing Zerante to the plate. 

Working a 3-2 count, Zerante went down looking, ending the Duhawks' comeback push, 6-5.

Game Changer
The error in the first game, left the Duhawks deflated … In the second game, Loras had trouble overcoming a four-run fourth inning by the Wildcats

Key Stat
The Duhawks struck out 16 times on Friday … St. Kate's struck out 11 times

Notables

• Sophomore Dani Stromert earned five walks while scoring twice
• Senior Holly Klein pitched six innings, recorded three strikeouts and two walks, before getting credited with the loss
• Junior Makaila Haase, sophomore Erin Hosch, and freshman Sarah Benavides made their season debuts on the mound
• Junior Katie Serpico went 1-for-3 with two rbi's

Quotable
Ashley Winter, head coach
"For it being our first time out this season, I'm pretty happy with some of the things we did. The pitchers we faced today are comparable to what we will see in Iowa Conference play, it was a good learning opportunity for us."

"We put a lot of players in the game and used people in different roles. Our flexibility and versatility will be huge for us this season."

"Tomorrow we may try different things defensively, and swap the order a bit, but really just to see what we have and what works best together."

Up Next 

The Duhawks return to the Augsburg Dome tomorrow morning to take on Crown. First pitch of the doubleheader is set for 8:30 a.m.