The Dominican University softball team dropped a pair of 4-3 games to the Marian University Sabres to open Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) play on Tuesday night at the Ballpark at Rosemont. The Stars put the tying run on base in the bottom of the seventh of both games of the conference twin bill but could not come through with the game tying hit, falling to 6-8 overall and 0-2 in league play.
Dominican will return to the diamond on Thursday, traveling to North Central College for a non-conference series before returning to the Ballpark for a NCAA doubleheader against the Aurora University Spartans on Saturday.
Game One: Marian 4, Dominican 3
A three-run third inning for the Marian Sabres proved to be the difference in a 4-3 loss for the Stars to open conference play.
The Stars took a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the third when
Sydney Kuderna bounced a two-out single through the left side with runners at first and second, plating
Marissa Burns. Marian answered with three runs in the top of the fourth, sparked by back-to-back triples by Alexa Rodriguez and Kenzie Waechter, the eight and nine hitters in the Sabres' lineup.
Dominican got one run back in the bottom of the fifth after
CJ Mardirosian led off the frame with a double to right. The Stars' catcher later scored when
Katie Fredrick bounced out to shortstop. Dominican then put the leadoff runner on in the sixth and seventh innings but could not come through with the clutch hit. A double play aided the Sabres in the sixth before Paige Rauhut buckled down in the seventh for the Sabres, getting Fredrick on strikes to end the game with the tying run at second.
Cat Klostermann was tagged with the loss for Dominican, falling to 3-4 on the season. The sophomore right-hander surrendered four runs, three earned, on ten hits and two walks while striking out five.
For the Sabres, Rauhut picked up the win, improving to 6-7 with the complete-game victory. Rauhut allowed three runs, two earned, on seven hits and five walks while punching out three.
Offensively, the Stars managed seven hits, leaving ten runners on base. Kuderna finished the game 2-for-4 with an RBI and a double.
Game Two: Marian 4, Dominican 3
Kuderna took the circle in game two for Dominican, falling to 2-3 after allowing four runs on seven hits and three walks.
The Sabres opened the scoring in the second, scoring twice in the inning including a leadoff home run for Peyton Loesch to the seats in left. Marian tacked on another run in the third, opening a 3-0 lead.
Dominican pulled within a run in the bottom of the third.
Marissa Burns sparked a two-out rally with a triple to right. After Burns scored on a wild pitch,
Gabi Alfaro pulled the Stars within 3-2 when she deposited a 1-0 pitch into the seats in right for her second home run of the season.
Marian added an important insurance run in the sixth when Taylor Lauscher tripled to the gap in right-center. Rachel Soch followed with a sac fly, scoring Lauscher.
Dominican rallied in the seventh, scoring on an RBI double by Alfaro before loading the bases with two outs before Rauhut returned to the circle, getting Kuderna to bounce into a fielder's choice for her first save of the season.
Dominican stranded nine more runners in the nightcap. Alfaro went 3-for-4 in the loss with two RBIs, a home run and double.
