Contact: Nathan Cameron, Assistant Director of Athletic Communications, 563-588-7243
 
Apr. 23, 2022 – Two days after sweeping the Cornell College Rams in a non-conference doubleheader, the Loras College softball team (20-8, 5-7 A-R-C) made the short trip down the road to the University of Dubuque (22-8, 9-5 A-R-C) to take on the Spartans in an American Rivers Conference bout. The Duhawks took down the Spartans in game one, fueled by a complete game shutout by freshman pitcher Ashlyn Hemm before falling in game two to split on the day.
 
Neither side brought a run home in the first inning of game one but the Duhawks struck first in the top of the second inning as Payton Meier led the inning off with an infield single to second base. Hannah Wubben took over on the base path for Meier, immediately stealing second before Whitney Leipold moved Wubben to third on a sacrifice bunt. With Wubben on third, Emily Monahan knocked in an RBI on a single into center field before moving to second on an error. Claire Peachey took advantage of having Monahan in scoring position and hit an infield single to bring home Monahan for the second run of the inning. Morgan Machovec came to bat with one out on the side and hit into a fielder's choice that saw Peachey thrown out at second on the play to put Ellie Schill in the batter's box. Schill drove a double into the gap in left center field to score Machovec from first and give the Duhawks a three-run lead at the end of the second.
 
The score remained the same through the sixth inning until the Duhawks tacked on three more insurance runs in the top half of the seventh. Peachey led the inning off with a single down the left field line before moving to second on a bunt for a single off the bat of Machovec. Errors plagued the Spartans on the play that saw Machovec advance to second and Peachey come around to score for the first run of the inning. Schill moved Machovec to third on an infield bunt for a single before stealing second to put runners on second and third. An error by the catcher brought Machovec home for the Duhawks' fifth run of the game before Grace Houghton knocked home Schill from second on an RBI single to close the game out with a final score of 6-0 in favor of Loras.
 
Hemm held the Spartans to just one hit in the game while keeping them off the scoreboard in a complete game shutout, striking out 12 and walking five in the 7.0 innings in the circle.
 
At the plate, the Duhawks tallied nine hits, led by Schill and Peachey who each had two hits and an RBI in the game. Houghton and Monahan joined in the charge with a hit and an RBI apiece.
 
In the second game of the day, the Spartans gained an immediate three-run advantage in the bottom of the first inning before the Duhawks responded in the top of the first with their first run of the game. With an out on the side, Leipold hit a single to third and advanced to second on a bad throw before coming around to score on an RBI double off the bat of Peachey, cutting the Spartans' lead to just two runs. In the bottom of the same inning, Dubuque pulled back ahead by five after plating three runs of their own to bring the score to 6-1.
 
The Duhawks sparked a late-game comeback in the top of the fifth inning as Machovec hit a lead-off single into left field before moving to third on an infielder error on a hit from Abby Jones that saw Jones make her way to second. With runners in scoring position on second and third, Houghton hit an infield ground out to the shortstop, bringing home Machovec to cut the Spartans' lead to four runs but the Spartans responded in the bottom of the inning with another run on an RBI double, bringing the score to 7-2 with two innings to play.
 
The top of the sixth inning saw the Duhawks bring home a pair of runs in an effort to regain the lead with Meier leading the inning off with a single down the left field line. With an out in the inning, Monahan drew a walk to put two runners on base for Alyssa Hughes, who came in to pinch hit for Peachey. With Hughes at the plate, runners advanced to second and third on a wild pitch before Hughes loaded the bases after drawing a walk. With two outs and bases loaded, Schill roped a single down the left field line that brought home Monahan and Meier but the comeback fell short as the Spartans took the 7-4 win to see the Duhawks split the series.
 
Reagan Spence got the start in the circle and threw 1.0 innings, allowing three runs on four hits before Shandi Rulli came in at relief. Rulli faced two batters and allowed a pair of runs before Hemm came in to dish 5.0 innings, allowing two runs on seven hits with four strikeouts.
 
The Duhawks had six hits in the game with six Duhawks recording a hit apiece, led by Schill who went 1-for-3 with a team-leading two RBIs while Houghton and Peachey added an RBI each.
 
Loras is back in action on Monday, Apr. 25 as they travel to Decorah, Iowa to take on the Norse from Luther College. First pitch of the doubleheader is scheduled for 2:00 PM.