The Peacock softball team (18-25, 13-9 NSIC) scored 23 runs on 27 hits across 12 innings on Saturday in Moorhead, Minn., but came away with a split against the Dragons of Minnesota State Moorhead (12-24, 2-20 NSIC). Upper Iowa ran away with game one, scoring six runs in the third inning and nine runs in the fourth to win 15-0 in a five inning game. Game two saw the script flipped with MSUM going big early as the Dragons scored six runs in the first inning and two runs in the second. The Peacocks rallied back in the game, but fell 9-8.
Game 1: Upper Iowa 15, Minnesota State Moorhead 0Upper Iowa broke a scoreless tie in game one with a six-run third inning.
Jacqueline Flood put UIU on the board with a two-RBI single, scoring
Shelby Crist and
Whitney Williams. After
Erica Kirgan was hit by a pitch,
Katie Sammons and
Lauren Marlinghaus hit back-to-back jacks. Sammons' big fly scored Flood and Kirgan, while Marlinghaus' bomb was of the solo variety.
The Peacocks followed their offensive outburst in the third with an even more impressive display in the fourth. UIU brought 14 batters to the plate in the top half of the fourth, scoring nine runs eight singles, two errors and a walk. The first eight batters in the inning reached safely before the Dragons could record an out. Flood, Kirgan, Sammons, Marlinghaus,
Sammy Garrett and
Shannon Nix (2) picked up RBIs in the inning.
The run support was more than enough for Flood, who flirted with a no-hitter for a couple innings, but eventually gave up hits to the Dragons in the third and fourth, both only singles. The Peacock pitcher improved to 10-11 on the season, throwing five innings and striking out six Dragon hitters.
Game 2: Minnesota State Moorhead 9, Upper Iowa 8The Peacock bats stayed hot heading into game two as UIU hung up a three-spot in the top of the first. Williams singled and stole second, then scored on a
Katie Mnichowicz single. After Flood was hit by a pitch, Kirgan singled to lead the bases. Sammons came up with her second big hit of the day, this time a single back up the middle, scoring Mnichowicz and Flood to give UIU a 3-0 lead in the first.
But in this game, the Dragons had a little fire power of their own. MSUM loaded the bases with one out in its half of the first and took the lead on a grand slam from junior left field Kristy Bruni. Three batters later, it was sophomore third baseman Kristina Villalobos with a two-run shot to give Minnesota State Moorhead a 6-3 lead after the first inning.
A trio of hits by the Dragons in the bottom of the second scored two more for MSUM, making it a five-run game, 8-3.
Upper Iowa started to chip away at the lead in the third. Kirgan led off with a double and came around on a
Riley Kruel single. UIU got another run in the fourth, when a Sammons single brought Flood home to cut the lead to three, 8-5.
Minnesota State Moorhead added an insurance run in the bottom of the fourth that would end up being the difference in the game. Bruni singled with two outs, then sophomore first baseman Lauren Meeker doubled to center, scoring Bruni and pushing the lead back to four, 9-5.
UIU got two runs back in the fifth thanks to a couple of hits and an error by the Dragons and held Minnesota State Moorhead scoreless in their half of the fifth and sixth.
The Peacocks came up down two in their last at-bats in the seventh inning. Garrett doubled to start the inning but the next two hitters got out. Mnichowicz got a two-out single and Flood was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Kirgan then got hit to score Garrett, but the Peacocks would leave the bases loaded as Sammons flew out to end the game.
Taylor Bjork (3-4) took the loss, throwing just one-third of an inning, allowing two hits and four runs.
