Visiting Wayne State Powers Past Bulldogs In GLIAC Twinbill

Big Rapids, Mich. - Visiting Wayne State proved to be tough to beat on Tuesday (April 22) as the Warriors posted a pair of Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) victories over Ferris State at the FSU Softball Field in Big Rapids.

The warriors, who had won 29 games on the season entering the league twinbill, took a 11-3 win in game one and sealed the sweep with a 9-1 triumph in a six-inning contest in game two of the doubleheader.

In the opener, Wayne State produced 10 hits and was aided by five Bulldog errors. They jumped out to a 4-0 lead after two-run innings in both the third and fourth frames before exploding for five runs in the fifth. They added two insurance runs in the seventh after FSU had scored twice in the bottom of the fifth to keep the game alive.

The Bulldogs mustered only three hits in the opener with catcher Casey Bias notching two, including a home run. She also scored two of FSU's three runs in the game. Designated player Alyssa Smith also had a hit and drove in a run while Rachael Gabrielson accounted for the Bulldogs' other RBI.

Junior Cara DeLange started the game in the circle before giving way to Stacy Thompson. Freshman Megan Hiler closed the outing. Together, the trio combined for six strikeouts and five walks in the seven innings of action.

On the Wayne State side, the Warriors received three hits from Emily Cava along with three RBI's by Emily Bryce. Lyndsay Butler also notched two hits and the Warriors netted a pair of doubles in the victory. Butler recorded her 15th victory of the year pitching as she tossed six innings and allowed only two runs on two hits with six K's. Mackenzie Boehler pitched the seventh and struck out one while giving up a single run on one hit.

Ferris State had trouble coming up with hits in the nightcap as well as the Bulldogs managed only two hits in the game compared to 12 on the Wayne State side. The Warriors scored the first run of the contest in the third before bolting in front with six runs in the fourth. FSU scored its lone run in the sixth before the Warriors tallied a pair of runs in the bottom of the frame to end the game.

Smith and Gabrielson had FSU's lone hits of the contest, which both came on doubles. Smith accounted for the Bulldogs' RBI.

Meanwhile, Wayne State was paced by Cava, Gabby Williams and Julie Ingratta, who all came up with two hits each. Amanda Burnard drove in three runs with Bryce accounting for two. Both Burnard and Williams homered for the Warriors.

Senior Amy Dunleavy threw the initial three and two-thirds innings for FSU and allowed seven runs on eight hits with a single strikeout and walk before giving way to Hiler, who allowed two runs on four hits in two innings pitched.

Wayne State received a stellar performance in the circle by Briana Lee, who improved to 15-2 on the year by tossing a two-hitter in six innings with 12 strikeouts.

With the two wins, Wayne State improved to 31-9 overall and 11-5 in league play. FSU fell to 13-15 overall and 8-9 in the GLIAC.

Ferris State continues a busy week of action by hosting Saginaw Valley State for a rescheduled single game on Wednesday (April 23) at the FSU Softball Field in Big Rapids starting at 5 p.m. (ET).

Following Wednesday's tilt, FSU will have a day off before returning to action on Friday (April 25) at Findlay for a two-game set. Ferris State then heads to Hilldale on Saturday (April 26) for a twinbill.

In addition, the GLIAC office has also announced the addition of a change to FSU's remaining home schedule. The Bulldogs will now host Ashland for two league games on Sunday (April 27) before closing the regular-season campaign at home versus archrival Grand Valley State on Monday (April 28). The starting times for both Sunday and Monday's games have yet to be announced.