APRIL 25, 2016
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SOFTBALL
Drake drops four straight, first MVC losses
ASSISTANT COACH Kasey Griffith (left) stands ready as the first base coach for the batting Bulldogs against Missouri State last weekend. (Right) Sophomore pitcher Kailee Smith’s ERA has been steadily improving since early March, dropping nearly eight points. She gave up just one earned run in 4.1 innings against UNI on April 19. PHOTOS BY MOHAMAD SUHAIMI | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Matthew Gogerty Beat Writer matthew.gogerty@drake.edu @matt_gogo
It was an unusual week for Drake Softball. The team, who was undefeated in the Missouri Valley Conference coming into the week, has won only one of five games since April 12. After losing to the University of Iowa on the road, the Bulldogs came back home for a three game weekend series against the Missouri State Bears, where they were able to snag a single win before being saddled with their first two losses of the conference season. That was followed by two blowout losses in a doubleheader at the University of Northern Iowa, Drake losing by a combined score of 15-1. Missouri State
The series against Missouri State began Saturday afternoon with a doubleheader. The first game had a slow start, with neither team scoring in the first two innings. In the bottom of the third, things started to pick up for the Bulldogs. Freshman Kennedy Frank had a home run that put Drake up one. After a couple of walks, junior Ashlie Chambers flew out to center for an RBI sac‑fly to extend the lead to two. In the top of the fourth, the Bears were able to get their first and only run of the game off of Sophomore Nicole Newman with a home run down the left field line. The Bulldogs were quiet from the plate until the bottom of the fifth, when they put another run on the board on three hits. After keeping the Bears at bay during the top of the sixth, the Bulldogs had a rally in the bottom of the inning. Taryn Pena drove in a run on a single down the left field line when Megan Sowa, who had gotten on base with a single to the shortstop, was able to score on an error by the Bears catcher. The Bulldogs again kept the Bears from doing anything in the top of the seventh, and the game ended in a Bulldogs win, 6-1. In the second game on Saturday, the Bulldogs faced Bears pitcher Erin Struemph. Struemph proved to be a puzzle that the Bulldogs could not piece together, both in this game and the next one on Sunday. On Saturday, the Bulldogs found themselves in serious trouble at the plate, accumulating only three hits for the entire game. Compared previous games, having nine hits against the game before and averaging 8.6 hits per
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game in the five games prior, they were struggling. But the Bulldogs were able to make up for it on the mound. With senior Mariah McKinnon in the circle, they were able to hold the Bears to only five hits in the game. McKinnon registered six strikeouts in five innings. One of the two runs the Bears were able to score came on an error by the Bulldogs. The other came on a home run, and the game ended 2-0. This snapped the Bulldogs undefeated record in the MVC, bringing their record to 12-1 in conference play. McKinnon’s performance in this game, despite the loss, is a testament to the work she has put in this season. She has cut her ERA nearly in half over the past month and a half. She now sits at 5.47 after holding a 10.50 ERA in the beginning of March. “It’s a good place for us to build, and I’m glad it’s happening now,” McKinnon said after the loss, “so we can have plenty of time to learn from it, and get some games under our belt.” The Bulldogs would face Struemph again on Sunday in an almost identical performance. The Bulldogs just couldn’t get their bats going against Struemph. Drake only scored one run in the game on a Taryn Pena home run, her third of the season. Newman pitched the whole game, striking out 11 and giving up two runs on six hits. Newman now has 201 strikeouts on the season. “I’m just working well with the catcher (Pena),” Newman said of the milestone. “My pitching coach is setting me up well (in terms of) just really knowing the batters.” Regardless, the Bulldogs still turned in lackluster offensive performances against UNI. “(Struemph) got ahead of batters, and then she would throw her changeup, which was also really strong,” Pena said. The game on Sunday ended 2-1, bringing the Bulldogs their second loss in the MVC.
innings in the first game, hurling six strikeouts. Kailee Smith came in to keep the game close, but the bats were unable to give the team a chance at comeback. In the second game, Mariah McKinnon threw 1.1 innings and gave up five runs before Smith again entered the game as relief. She gave up one run on three hits,
two walks and a hit batter. The only run the Bulldogs scored throughout the two games came on a throwing error by UNI in the first game. The pair of losses makes four in a row for the limping Bulldogs. Drake’s record is now 24-18 and 12-4 in conference play, still ranked No. 1 in the MVC.
Up Next
The Bulldogs attempted to snap their losing streak in a three-game series against Wichita State at Ron Buel Field on April 23-24. The series started after The Times‑Delphic went to print.
UNI
On Tuesday evening, the University of Northern Iowa hosted the Bulldogs for a doubleheader. The night ended in two more losses for the Bulldogs. The first game ended 7-1, and the second ended by the mercy rule in the fifth inning, 8-0. In both games, the Bulldogs struggled to get runners on base or get the big hits that they have been relying on all season. Entering Tuesday, the Bulldogs had been averaging 6.9 hits during the last five games. Against UNI, the Bulldogs only had a total of five hits combined in both games. Newman pitched for 4.1
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