Jackets Drop Pair of Heartbreakers to Alma

DEFIANCE, Ohio – Defiance lost a couple of last-inning thrillers to Alma College on Wednesday, taking extra innings to fall in the opener, 11-10, while losing 5-3 in the final game of the doubleheader. The Jackets fall to 21-12 with the losses while Alma moves to 27-13 on the year.

Trailing 7-1 heading into the bottom half of the fifth inning, DC slowly worked its way back into the opening game of the twinbill. The Jackets plated two runs in the fifth frame, as Tasha Stucke and Stephanie Lieto each drove in a run.

Defiance cut the lead to three, 7-4, heading into the seventh on Stucke's RBI single to through the left side, setting the stage for an exciting finish. After two runs by the Scots in the top half of the seventh, DC would explode for five runs to send the contest into extra innings.

The Jackets got their rally started with consecutive singles by Allison Ramsay, Amanda Auzins and Marah Robinson, loading the bases for the middle of the lineup. Ramsay would score on a wild pitch, before Stucke drove in her fourth and fifth runs of the game with a double in the gap. Melanie Bushman followed that with a single down the left field line, plating Aarika Davis and Stucke to knot the game at 9-9.

However, Alma's Cassie Schwab would ruin the comeback for Defiance in the extra frame, hitting a two-run home run. Facing another final-inning deficit, DC was not ready to throw in the towel. The Jackets loaded the bases with one out, but were only able to plate one as the Scots pulled out the victory.

Defiance racked up 14 hits in the game, as six players had two or more hits. Stucke had a career day at the plate, going three-for-four with a career-high five RBI. Ramsay also collected a trio of base knocks in the game, while Bushman added a pair of hits and two RBI.

Johnston took the loss for DC, dropping a decision for the first time in her last seven starts. The senior pitcher gave up 11 runs, six earned, in seven innings of work.

Defiance grabbed its first lead of the afternoon in the first inning of the  nightcap, as Davis hit her first home run of the season, a three-run shot, over the fence in left field to put the Jackets up, 3-0.

Kelly Schnipke shut out the Scots through the first four innings to help DC maintain its three-run advantage, but Alma finally broke through in the fifth with a pair of run-scoring singles to draw within one, 3-2.

The Scots would use another long ball to sweep the twinbill, as Brittany Fales' three-run homer in the final frame off DC closer Brittany Gow gave Alma a 5-3 victory.

Gow (1-1)took the loss for Defiance, after surrendering the first earned runs of her career. Schnipke, who tallied a no decision, gave up two runs on six hits in her five innings of work.

Defiance will be back in action on Friday, April 24, when it hosts Transylvania for a HCAC doubleheader with conference title hopes on the line. The first pitch is scheduled for 3:00 p.m.