WISCONSIN DELLS, Wisc. --- Almost a year to the day of their last game played in Florida, the TIU softball team returned to action on Wednesday morning as they opened up the 2021 season with a doubleheader against NCAA Division III Ripon College at the Woodside Dells Dome. Having totaled four wins in 11 games prior to last season's cancellation due to COVID-19, the Trojans were eager after last year's abrupt end to get back on the diamond.

The opening game of the day proved to be a pitching battle, which began with Trinity's Alyssa Frey facing Ripon's Alyssa Banta. Frey pitched well through four innings, giving up just two hits and striking out eight batters, but the TIU offense struggled to bring runners across home plate. Hailey Baker took the mound in the fifth inning and picked up where Frey left off, dominating the Red Hawks with 11 strikeouts.

The Trojans would need extra innings and the international tiebreaker rule to secure the win, with a runner automatically being placed on second base at the start of extra innings. Frey would single to move Hailey Kuriger to third base from second, while Britney Knox drove in the game-winning run on a double to the left field fence to give Trinity the 1-0 win in nine innings.

TIU's bats came alive in the second game of the doubleheader with an eight run, 12 hit performance following their narrow game one win. The Trojans scored seven runs in the top of the second, including RBI doubles by Knox and Heather Anderson, and RBI singles by Kuriger, Kristin Storer, Lauren Neveau and Dana Percival. Trinity would tack on their final run of the game in the fifth as Meghan Ramseyer drove in Knox on a sacrifice hit to second base. Fresh off a strong start in the opening game, Frey again put together four solid innings of work, allowing just one base hit. Baker would close out the fifth inning with two strikeouts as the Trojans took game two by a score of 8-0 to complete the sweep of the doubleheader.

 

ADDITIONAL GAME NOTES

• TIU improves to 5-0 all-time against Ripon after both of today's wins.

• Wednesday's wins mark the first 2-0 start to the TIU softball season in over 16 years.

• Hailey Baker's 11 strikeouts in game one set a new school single-game record for strikeouts in a win. The previous record was held by Taylor Carli, who struck out ten at Mount Mary (WI) on Apr. 15, 2016.

• Baker's win in game one was the second pitching victory of her TIU career (2020-pres.).

• Alyssa Frey notched her fourth win as a Trojan pitcher, eighth most in program history.

• After being walked on balls in Wednesday's second game, Lauren Neveau became the fourth most walked player in program history with her 36th career base on balls. She passes Britteny Weisensel (2009-12, Taylor Carli (2016-18) and Sara Grygus (2017-19).

• Kristin Storer stole three bases in her first two plate appearances in TIU game one win.

• Offensively, Heather Anderson notched two hits in three plate appearances in the first game of the day.

• Storer, Anderson and Brittney Knox each recorded two hits in the second game of the afternoon.

• Brooke Heraty led TIU with 19 putouts in game one while playing catcher. Anderson noted eight while starting behind the plate in game two.

UP NEXT

The Trojans (2-0) will begin their five day, ten game spring break road trip around Illinois and Indiana next Tuesday, March 9 as they visit the Taylor University Trojans for a doubleheader. First pitch is scheduled for 3:00PM EST from Taylor's Gudakundst Field, and can be watched LIVE on the Taylor Live Stream.

Visit TIUtrojans.com to stay up to date with the latest TIU softball news and schedule updates.

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Trinity International University is a comprehensive, national university affiliated with the Evangelical Free Church of America and located in Bannockburn, Illinois, 25 miles north of Chicago. TIU educates men and women to engage in God's redemptive work in the world by cultivating academic excellence, Christian faithfulness and lifelong learning.