Pride and Grand View play to matching 3-1 Viking wins
DES MOINES, Iowa - Quickly returning to the road after opening their home schedule a day prior, the Clarke University softball team fell by a pair of 3-1 final scores to No. 16 Grand View University on Saturday afternoon.
Similar to both of their Friday games against Graceland, the Pride either had equal or the same amount of hits as their opponent and even led both of Saturday's games 1-0 but a two-run second inning from the Vikings in the opener and a three-run fourth in the finale carried the home team to both victories.
The pitching trio of Malarie Huseman, Payge Pyszka, and Meredith Gatto all had strong performances, Huseman in a six-inning complete game in the opener while Pyszka and Gatto combined for six innings in the finale with Pyszka getting the start and going four innings and Gatto pitching two hitless relief innings.
In game one, Clarke scored their lone run in the top of the first on a double steal with one out after a leadoff single from Lily King and an Elizabeth Leverton single two batters later to make it first and third before Leverton would take off for first to draw the throw down where King would advance home from third.
Rachel Anderson would answer for the Vikings in the bottom of the first with an RBI single on her way to a 2-for-3 game while Olivia Kyes broke the 1-1 tie in the bottom of the second before pitcher Jessica Walljasper would help her self with an insurance run by way of an RBI single.
In the circle Walljasper moved to 10-3 on the season with a complete game five-hitter while striking out seven Pride hitters but also walking five before she gave way to game two starter Madi Huisman who would move to 11-2 with her own five-hitter while striking out three hitters and walking none.
CU opened the scoring of game two on an RBI single from Emma Hodnet in the third inning as Grand View would get a game-tying single from Allyx Lee and a two-RBI go-ahead single by Gracie Hagle to complete their three-run inning off of Pyszka.
Clarke softball will be at home for all three of their doubleheaders next week start when they host Mount Mercy University on Wednesday, Apr. 3 at Veterans Memorial Park for a 4:00 p.m. CT scheduled first pitch of game one.