COLUMBUS, Ohio - The Ohio Dominican softball team, looking to add to their current five game win streak, took on Tiffin University in a doubleheader at Panther Field. ODU has had the hot-hand of late, and after the splitting on Saturday have won eight of their last 10 games.
Tiffin (12-4) snapped the Panthers (13-14) streak with a 3-2 victory in game one. The Dragons took an early 1-0 lead in the first after stringing together back-to-back hits off of starting pitcher Erica Sutter (Sr./Mansfield, OH). ODU would tie the game in the bottom of the first when Samantha Wolfe (Jr./Columbus, OH) would score off of the untimely, two-out error by the Dragon's second baseman to knot the game at one. Lauren Mazzuca would give Tiffin the lead back when she took Sutter deep to left center in the third inning. The Panthers again had an answer as Jamie Hazel (Sr./Pataskala, OH) painted the right field line for an RBI single in the bottom of the fourth.
With the game tied at two, Mazzuca would lead off the top of the seventh inning with a triple and would eventually score the game-winning run. ODU had an opportunity in their final at-bat, but their seventh inning rally came up short.
ODU was led offensively by Wolfe who went 2-for-3 at the plate and scored a run. Hazel, Erin Sutter (So./Mansfield, OH) and Brooke McCartney (Fr./Salem, OH) each collected one hit apiece for the Panthers. Sutter (4-5) went the distance for the ODU and took the loss.
The Panthers were able to bounce back in game two with a 3-2 victory of their own behind another solid pitching performance by junior Maria Staton (New Bremen, OH).
Tiffin would again strike first scoring one run in the top of the third inning. The Panthers would rally in the bottom of the fourth inning as Chelsea Archer (So./Thornville, OH; pictured) would collect two RBI's to give the Panthers the lead, 2-1. The Panthers would add an insurance run in the fourth when Tiffin's first baseman caught a foul ball and then carried it out-of-play allowing the runner to score from third on the dead ball. That would be all the Panthers would need to win game two by a final score of, 3-2.
Jennifer Baker (Jr./Cortland, OH), Samantha Wolfe and Chelsea Archer each had a hit as the Panthers produced three runs on three hits.
The Panthers are scheduled to return to action this Tuesday, March 30th, as they will battle former AMC rival Walsh University in Canton, Ohio.
