Ferris State Impressive In Regular-Season Finale Win

Saving one of its best performances for last is exactly what the Ferris State University softball team did in its home regular-season finale as the Bulldogs registered 12 base hits and scored seven times in the sixth inning to post an impressive 9-0 six-inning decision over Northwood this Sunday (May 1) in the second game of a Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) doubleheader at the FSU Varsity Softball Field in Big Rapids, Mich.

The win evened Ferris State's overall record to 21-21 on the season while the Bulldogs improved to 18-12 in the GLIAC's North Division.  Northwood dropped to 25-18-1 overall and 19-12-1 in the conference with the setback.

Ferris State went up 2-0 in the top of the second inning as the Bulldogs registered five hits and were aided by a Timberwolves' error.  Sophomore designated player Lindsey Pettit (Portland) doubled down the left field line and would eventually score on a Northwood error after junior outfielder Stephanie Dusendang (Comstock Park/Rockford) had singled.  Dusendang would cross home plate as well as a result of senior catcher Rachel Mueller's (Milford/Santa Clarita, Calif. Valencia) RBI single though the left side of the Northwood infield.

A seven-run output by Ferris State in the sixth inning generated by five hits and three Northwood errors put distance on the scoreboard between the two conference divisional teams.  Stephanie Dusendang's single knocked in the Bulldogs' initial run of the inning while Lindsey Pettit scored on an error for the team's second run.  FSU would increase its lead to 5-0 when junior Allison Webber (Frankfort) lined a pitch up the middle to knock in a run.  A RBI single by senior outfielder Colleen Roney (Wheaton, Ill./Glen Ellyn Glenbard South) and junior third baseman Makenzi Peterson (Big Rapids) both earned a RBI as a result of a single and a fielder's choice, respectively.  The final two runs occurred when junior outfielder Morgan Kramerich (Crest Hill, Ill./Lockport) was successful in a stolen base attempt at home plate and a single by junior first baseman Chelsea Morris (Jenison) drove in the Bulldogs' ninth run.

FSU had eight batters register at least a base hit in the nightcap with four tallying two hits apiece.  Chelsea Morris, Lindsey Pettit, Stephanie Dusendang, and sophomore second baseman Lainee Clay (Wheelersburg, Ohio) all generated two hits each.  Dusendang also chipped in with a squad-best two RBIs and scored two runs as well. 

The offensive output by Ferris State was enough run support for freshman pitcher Amy Dunleavy (Canton), who tossed a shutout by scattering nine hits and striking out two Northwood batters in improving her season record to 7-11 in the circle.  Catie Kaliszauk (5-7) was the first of three pitchers to see action for the Timberwolves and took the loss.

The Bulldogs will now get set to compete in the double-elimination 2011 GLIAC Softball Tournament next weekend (May 6-8) at the Emerson Park Softball Complex in Midland, Mich. 

Notes: Ferris State has won six of its last eight games to date . . . Chelsea Morris has tallied two hits or more in five of her last seven outings . . . Stephanie Dusendang extended her current reaching base streak to 18 games with her two-hit performance . . . Three Bulldogs - Chelsea Morris (48 hits), Makenzi Peterson (46 hits), and Stephanie Dusendang (42 hits) have all racked up 40 or more base hits this campaign which also represent personal career single-season highs.