ADRIAN, Mich. – The Siena Heights softball team swept Cleary in a Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC) doubleheader on Sunday afternoon. The Saints won game one 9-1 after 5-innings before closing out the day with a 6-3 decision in the second game. Haley Rose led the SHU bats with four hits on the day.
THE BASICS
Final Scores: Siena Heights def. Cleary, 9-1 (5-innings) & 6-3
Location: Adrian, Michigan (Christensen Memorial Field)
Records: Siena Heights (14-10, 5-5 WHAC), Cleary (8-22, 5-9 WHAC)
HOW IT HAPPENED
Sam Hill reached base on balls to start the game. Lily Guerra doubled down the left-field line to move Hill to third. Rose took advantage with a single up the middle that scored Hill and moved Guerra to third to put the Saints up 1-0.
The Cougars tied things up with an RBI single in the 2nd-inning. Kat Moreau found a base with a single to right field in the bottom half of the second. An error by Cleary gave Alyssa Marshall first base while moving Moreau to third. Julia Hogston singled to left field, bringing Moreau home for a 2-1 advantage. Kelsey Uhl extended the lead three plays later when she doubled to left field to score Hogston and Marshall for the 4-1 lead.
An RBI-single by Hill brought Tori Harding home for the 5-1 edge. Guerra doubled to left field on the next play to bring all three base runners home and put Siena on top 8-1. Rose hit an RBI single to short to finish the scoring for the first game.
Game two started with Rose doubling to right field scoring Guerra and moving Uhl to third. Maddie Herrera then singled through the left side to score Uhl and put the score at 2-0 SHU. Moreau singled to left, scoring Rose and extending the lead to 3-0 at the end of the 1st-inning.
A sacrifice fly for Cleary in the 2nd-inning cut the Saint lead to 3-1. Guerra matched that with a sacrifice fly of her own to regain a three-run edge in the bottom half of the second. Rose singled to right center to score Hill and the Saints climbed to a 5-1 lead.
A wild pitch in the 5th-inning brought a Cougar across the plate and put the score at 5-2, Siena. Hogston belted a single to left field in the 6th-inning to score Harding and put the score at 6-2.
Siena Heights helped Cleary score in the top of the seventh when a fielding error allowed a run to cross the plate and put the score at 6-3 with two outs. A ground out to third ended the game and the day for the Saints.
TOP SAINTS
Hitting
• Hill (2-2), Guerra (2-3), Uhl (2-3), and Rose (2-3) each tallied two hits in the first game.
• Hill scored twice, walked once, and batted in runner in game one.
• Guerra scored a run and had a team-high three RBIs in the opening game.
• Uhl and Rose each tallied two RBIs.
• Rose was the only Saint in game two with multiple hits. She also led the team with two RBIs in the contest.
Pitching
• Uhl (W, 6-5) pitched all 5-innings to earn the win. She allowed just three hits and one run while striking out two.
• Jordan Green (W, 8-5) struck out five batters on her way to earning the win in game two after she pitched all seven innings of the nightcap.
THE OPPOSITION
Hitting
• Three Cougars recorded hits in the first game. Kelly Schram recorded the games only RBI.
• Susie Bielecki led Cleary with two hits in game two.
• Kelsi Jacobs was 1-2 and tallied the team's only RBI in the game.
Pitching
• Mercedes Cole (L, 0-5) started in the circle in game one. She gave up eight hits, six runs, and walked three in the losing effort.
• Natalie O'Reilly pitched 1.1 innings in relief during game one. She surrendered three hits, a run, and struck out two.
• Nicole Finazzo (L, 1-2) struck out three Saints in the game-two loss. She permitted 10 hits, six runs, and walked one.
UP NEXT
Siena will remain at home to host Michigan-Dearborn in a WHAC doubleheader on Wednesday, April 28. The games are scheduled to start at 3:30 p.m., EST.
