ARDEN HILLS, Minn. – The Macalester College softball team followed a tough 5-2 defeat with a 3-2 victory for a split of a MIAC doubleheader at Bethel University Saturday afternoon at Ona Orth Athletic Complex. The results give the Scots a 23-13 record on the season and keep them in a tie with the Royals (16-16) for fourth place in the conference standings with identical 10-8 MIAC records.
In the first game, senior
Sophie Futchko (Prince Frederick, Md./Huntingtown) broke a scoreless tie in the top of the fourth inning with a solo home run to left field for a 1-0 lead. Then in the top of the fifth, senior
Renee Nicholson (Downers Grove, Ill./Downers Grove South) hit a two-out single, stole second and came home on an error to put the Scots on top, 2-0. But Bethel came back in a big way with five runs on three hits and an error in the bottom of the sixth to gain the upper hand, 5-2. Macalester was unable to score in the top of the seventh and was forced to play for a split.
Futchko had two of the Scots' six hits in the game. Sophomore
Tess Bojorquez (San Clemente, Calif./San Clemente) allowed five runs, two earned, on seven hits with walking two and striking out two in 5 1/3 innings.
In Game 2, it was Bethel who struck first with a run in the third inning. The score remained 1-0 until the top of the fifth, when an error with the bases loaded allowed sophomores
Martha Miller (Medford, Wis./Medford) and
Monica Montoya (Blue Island, Ill./Dwight D. Eisenhower) to score for a 2-1 lead. Then in the seventh, Futchko doubled to bring home senior
Madeleine Kemper (Sioux Falls, S.D./Lincoln) with a pivotal insurance run. The Royals scored a run in the bottom of the seventh with two out, but Miller fanned her sixth batter of the game to clinch the win.
Miller held Bethel to two runs on seven hits while walking one and striking out six in a complete-game victory. She also helped herself with two hits and a run at the plate. Futchko went 2-for-4 with a double and a run batted in to finish with four hits on the day.
Macalester hosts third-place St. Olaf College on Sunday, April 27 in a MIAC doubleheader that will impact the MIAC Playoff picture. The first pitch is set for 1:00 p.m. at the Macalester Softball Complex.
