PEPPER PIKE, Ohio – The Ohio Dominican softball team began their road schedule stretch with a trip to Ursuline College on Wednesday afternoon. The Panthers took both games, resulting in the 800th career win for head coach Marcella Vanlandingham.
Senior Braxton Downs (Louisville, Ky.) led the way for the second day in a row with five hits. Downs snagged a double and three runs batted in. Following her was Alexis Stevens (Marion, Ohio) who registered three hits, one being a double and one a triple.
Senior Addison Smodilla (Terre Haute, Ind.) got it done both in the circle and at the plate. Smodilla netted six strikeouts in 7.0 innings while going 2-3 from the plate with a double and a stolen base. Marlee Jacobs (Plain City, Ohio) added two strikeouts in her 5.0 innings pitched.
Game One
The Panthers struck first in the opening frame with a single from Alli Madden (Cincinnati, Ohio) and a double from Stevens, taking an early 1-0 lead. The Arrows quickly answered with three runs off of two hits and an error.
ODU retook the lead 4-3 in the top of the next frame. Madden and Kendrick Sterling (Crothersville, Ind.) both collected RBIs with Stevens, Downs, and Sterling all betting hits. The Black and Gold continued to roll in the fourth inning adding a run off a single from Emily Holland (Mineral Ridge, Ohio).
Everyone batted in the fifth inning resulting in four runs being scored, three hits, and two walks. Ursuline added two runs in the bottom of the frame to make it 9-5. Downs collected her third hit of the game in the top of the sixth inning to give Ohio Dominican a 10-5 win.
Game Two
The Black and Gold got on the board first in the top of the second inning with hits from Smodilla, Olivia Congleton (Belpre, Ohio), and Gracie Jo Thompson (Ashville, Ohio). ODU scored again in the top of the next frame, making it 2-0.
Ohio Dominican extended their lead to 5-0 in the top of the fifth inning off of three hits and an error. The Arrows hit a three-run homerun in the bottom of the frame to cut their deficit to 5-3.
The Panthers added one more in the top of the sixth to seal the sweep and Vanlandingham's 800th win with a 6-3 finish.
Up Next
Ohio Dominican remains on the road with a doubleheader series at Trevecca Nazarene University on Saturday afternoon.
