Jackets and Gray Wolves split the day, DC earns first WHAC win

DEFIANCE, Ohio - Defiance College split the day with Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference opponent Lourdes at Gray Wolf Field Sunday. The Yellow Jackets took game one to earn its first WHAC victory, but fell in a close game two. 

Game One: Defiance 4, Lourdes 1

The first contest's action began at the bottom of the second inning as the Gray Wolves (4-7, 1-2 WHAC) hit back-to-back doubles to the left side off of Defiance pitched Madelynn Vickers, earning a run for Lourdes to take a 1-0 lead. A fly out to left field got the Yellow Jackets (8-16, 1-1 WHAC) out of the inning and Vickers at the plate to start the third. 

Vickers popped up to first base, earning the first out, but Haley Hughes, Ali Mowen and Anika Craft each followed with singles, ultimately sending Hughes home to equal the score. Up next, Kaylee Heath flew out to left and became the second out, though a double down center field from Morgan Scott brought in Mowen and Craft; Scott earned two RBIs. 

With no scoring from the Gray Wolves at the bottom of the third, Defiance's catcher Anna Emswiler entered the batter's box and singled to center field. Devyn Hamilton then reached first on an error and Vickers was walked to load the bases. With one out on the board, Mowen flew out to center field, earning an RBI as Emswiler scored, unearned, ending the first game's scoring. 

The top of the fifth featured a pitching change for the Yellow Jackets as Sydney Fackler took over for Vickers, finishing out the contest with one hit and no runs. 

Game Two: Defiance 1, Lourdes 2

Leadoff hitter Mowen struck first with a hit to the left side, which earned her a spot on second base. Anika Craft singled to advance Mowen before a groundout to the shortstop by Heath sent Mowen home for Defiance's sole run of the game. Heath was credited with her first RBI of the doubleheader. 

Lourdes completed the first and second innings in three up, three down fashion with Craft at the mound for the Yellow Jackets. At the bottom of the third, with a pinch runner on second, a single for the Gray Wolves allowed the runner to reach home due to an error on Emma Linn. 

On their fourth chance at-bat, the orange and black scored on a chaotic series of events. First a double and a walk filled first and second base then a wild pitch by Craft caused the runner on first to earn an out by getting caught stealing, while the runner on third stole home. The final three innings remained scoreless with zero combined hits from either team.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS  

• Defiance's 4-1 win in game one snapped its three-game losing streak and became its first win in the WHAC conference. 

• Ali Mowen, Anika Craft, Morgan Scott (2) and Kaylee Heath each earned RBIs in the matchup. 

• Game two featured a trio of double plays from Ali Mowen, Morgan Scott and Devyn Hamilton. Mowen leads the team on the season with three.

• Anna Emswiler's single earned her her first run since March 13 against Florida National. 

• The Yellow Jackets had no errors in game one, which became the first since their prior win, 10-9, over Indiana South Bend. 

• The two-game matchup is Defiance's fourth split of the year.  

• Madelynn Vickers (4 IP) and Sydney Fackler (3 IP) pitched for the Yellow Jackets in game one. Vickers earned her first win on the season and is now 1-2. 

• Anika Craft pitched all six innings for the Yellow Jackets in game two and is now 4-6 on the season. 

UP NEXT

Defiance College will take on the Rochester Christian Warriors at Jaycee Field on Wednesday. The doubleheader is set to begin at 3 p.m.

-JACKETS-