ROMEOVILLE, Ill. – Lewis' softball team took both ends of its doubleheader at McKendree on Saturday winning the opener 8-4 and the backend 7-3 at Bearcat Field in Lebanon, Ill., on Saturday afternoon. The Flyers improve to 18-26 overall and 9-13 in the GLVC while the Bearcats fall to 18-30 and 3-19 in the GLVC.
Game 1 – Lewis 8 McKendree 4
Lewis jumped out to a 6-0 on McKendree after five innings of play. The Flyers scored twice in the first on
Elexis Swartzentruber's (Normal, Ill./Normal Community) RBI double and
Cassie Shaw's (Moline, Ill./Moline) bunt single.
Lewis added to its lead with three runs in the third. Swartzentruber drove in her second run of the game with a single to left to make it 3-0. Later in the inning
Lauren Brennan (Cantonment, Fla./J.M. Tate) reached on an infield single to drive in the fourth run and
Dara Sanders (Crestwood, Ill./Mother McAuley) capped the inning with a single to right to make it 5-0.
Sanders drove in her second run of the game with a single to center in the sixth to extend the lead to 6-0.
The Bearcats cut into the Flyer lead scoring twice in the sixth but Lewis came right back with two in the seventh to regain its six-run cushion.
McKendree threatened in the seventh scoring two runs but the Flyers were able to seal the victory when Samantha Cameron grounded into a 6-3 double play to end the game.
Lewis had 12 hits in the contest and was led by Shaw and Sanders with three apiece while Swartzentruber and Brennan added two more.
Dara Sanders (Crestwood, Ill./Mother McAuley) picked up the complete game victory allowing four runs, two earned, on nine hits with three strikeouts to improve to 10-12 on the season.
Game 2 – Lewis 7 McKendree 3
The Flyers jumped out to the early lead in the backend of the doubleheader scoring two runs in the first. Swartzentruber continued her hot hitting at the plate ripping a double to center to drive in
Kristin Kavalauskas (Oak Forest, Ill./Tinley Park) with the first run. Shaw followed with a sacrifice fly to center to make it 2-0.
The Bearcats got a run back in their half of the first on a groundout to second scoring Caitlyn Lowry.
Lewis regained its two run lead in the second on
Morgan Weber's (Sugar Grove, Ill./Kaneland) one out single to center to drive in
Olivia Magaldi (Mishawka, Ind./Penn).
McKendree came right back with a run in its half of the second to cut the lead to 3-2.
Weber drove in her second run of the game in the fifth lining a double to center to score
Jessica Lofthouse (Oswego, Ill./Oswego) to make it 4-2. Swartzentruber followed with her fourth RBI of the day bringing Weber home with a single to center.
The Bearcats scored an unearned run in the fourth to cut the Flyer lead to 5-3.
Lewis tacked on a pair of insurance runs in the sixth. Swartzentruber drove in a run with a bunt single and another run scored on the play on an error by the first baseman.
The Flyers banged out 13 hits in the contest and were led by Swartzentruber with three while Weber and Kavalauskas had two apiece. Shaw picked up the complete game allowing three unearned runs on seven hits with a pair of strikeouts to improve to 8-12 on the year.
Lewis is back in action on Wednesday (April 24) traveling to Chicago to take on Saint Xavier in a doubleheader beginning at 2 p.m.
