MELBOURNE, FL - To open their appearance at the Space Coast Spring Games, the Ohio Dominican softball team competed against Wayne State (Mich.) and Minnesota State Mankato in mid-afternoon matchups. The Panthers opened their day with a strong 9-4 win against the Wayne State Warriors. In the second game, the Panthers fell to Mavericks in five innings, 11-2, to close out day one. 

Game One vs. Wayne St. (Mich.) (W, 9-4)
Freshman Alyvia Lawrentz took the circle for game one, grabbing her third win of the season. She pitched a full seven innings, allowing only four runs on 10 hits with three strikeouts and one walk. Offensively, right fielder Lilah Flores went 2-for-3 at the plate with one RBI, two runs, and a walk. Freshman Reese Loveday went 3-for-4 with one run, followed by Saadie Maysonet, who hit 2-for-4 with two RBIs and one run.

ODU struck first in the top of the first inning. Lilah Flores drew a walk and later crossed the plate following a throwing error by the Warriors on a ball hit by Kendrick Sterling. Loveday then reached on a single down the right-field line, which allowed Sterling to score on a passed ball, giving ODU a 2-0 lead after their first at-bats.

Wayne State responded in the top of the third with a run scored on a wild pitch. In the fourth, the Warriors put one more on the board to tie the game with a double to left field.

Like clockwork, ODU responded in the bottom of the inning. A double from Loveday started the rally, and Maysonet drove her in with a single up the middle to retake the lead. Avery Mueller maintained the momentum with a single and a stolen base. Hannah Plymale, pinch-running for Maysonet, scored the fourth run for ODU, and Mueller followed suit after Erica Massey recorded an RBI on an infield play for a 5-2 lead. Lilah Flores then singled to center field for an RBI, scoring Leea Ibarra (who reached on a fielder's choice) to make it 6-2.

Wayne State pulled one back in the fifth with an RBI double and added another in the seventh in a similar situation. However, ODU secured the game with key insurance runs in the fifth and sixth innings. In the fifth, Sophia Patena scored as a pinch runner on a Maysonet RBI single, making the score 7-3. Ibarra then singled to center to advance Maysonet, who later scored on a stolen base. In the sixth, ODU added an unearned run to cap off a dominant 9-4 victory in their first of six games in Melbourne, Florida.

Game Two vs. Minnesota St. Mankato (L, 11-2, 5 innings)
In the second game of the night, the Panthers fell to Minnesota State Mankato, 11–2. Three pitchers appeared in the circle: Emma Grau, Alyvia Lawrentz, and Lilly Irvine. Offensively, Erica Massey went 1-for-1 with a home run, while Addie Triplett finished 1-for-1 with a run scored.

ODU scored its runs in the third and fourth innings. Massey smacked a solo home run in the third, and Reese Loveday added the second run with a sacrifice fly RBI in the fourth.

The Panthers will prepare for two more games on March 16, scheduled for 10 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. at the Space Coast Spring Games, against Purdue Northwest and Lewis. They will have a break on Sunday before returning to action.