DC Softball Drops a Pair at First-Seeded Transylvania

LEXINGTON, Ky. – The Yellow Jackets continued a grueling stretch of seven games in four days on Sunday, when they traveled to Transylvania for a doubleheader with the conference-leading Pioneers. Fatigue finally caught up with the Jackets, as their five-game winning streak was snapped with a pair of losses.

Defiance was blanked, 7-0, in game one and suffered a 7-4 defeat in game two as the Pioneers extended their winning streak to 15 games. The Jackets, who will play at Transylvania again on Friday in the opening round of the conference tournament, had several opportunities to change the dynamic of the game, but produced just four hits in 18 at bats with runners in scoring position, while the Pioneers recorded eight hits in 16 opportunities.

Game one featured a duel between two of the HCAC's premier pitchers in Shauna Bowers and Kendra DeArk. DC's six hits in the game were the most surrendered by DeArk since April 2, but each inning ended with runners stranded as the Jackets were shutout for the fifth time this season.

Defiance took an early lead in game two, when Kaycee Butt launched a two-run shot over the left-center field wall, but Transy responded with two runs in the bottom of the second and broke the game open with a five-run fourth inning. The Jackets cut the deficit to three with a pair of runs in the fifth, but couldn't get any closer as they suffered their first back-to-back losses since March 9.

The Jackets (18-20; 10-6 HCAC) will get a chance to avenge the losses on Friday, May 6, when they square-off against the Pioneers in the opening round of the 2011 HCAC Tournament. Defiance will attempt to repeat its 2009 HCAC Tournament performance, when it traveled to Lexington and knocked out the first-seeded Pioneers to advance to the regional tournament.