From University of Chicago Athletics
The University of Chicago softball team put together a pair of explosive six-run innings and then rode strong pitching to beat Union (N.Y.) College and Massachusetts Institute of Technology on Sunday.
The Maroons improved to 3-0 on the season and have yet to allow an earned run.
Game One – UChicago 10, Union 1
UChicago did its damage early and often, scoring eight runs in the opening two innings to take command. Senior center fielder Devan Parkison led off the game with a single and promptly stole second base. Senior shortstop Kristin Lopez was next at the dish and she blasted a two-run homer – her second home run in as many games.
Union halved the deficit by scoring on an error in the bottom of the first. But the Maroons kept their offensive momentum rolling in their very next at-bat to break the game open. A bunt followed by an error made the score 3-1. Parkison knocked in one with a single and Lopez brought home another with a run-scoring bunt single. Senior first base Kathleen Kohm cracked a RBI double and the Maroons then loaded the bases for junior third base Maggie O'Hara. Swinging out of the five-spot, O'Hara cranked a two-run double of her own to left field, making the score 8-1.
The game ended early via the eight-run rule in the fifth inning. Two singles and a bunt loaded the bases once again, this time with Lopez stepping to the plate. The senior drew a run-scoring walk, and Kohm followed with a RBI sacrifice fly to provide the final tally.
On the pitching side, freshman Jordyne Prussak earned her first collegiate start and first career victory. Prussak hurled the opening four innings with two hits, one unearned run, three walks and three strikeouts to her credit. Junior Alexa Hanelin tossed the last inning to finish off the win, allowing one hit.
Offensively, UChicago tallied 11 hits while making one error on defense. Parkison was a spotless 3-for-3 at the plate. Lopez finished with four RBI and two walks. Prussak posted two hits of her own in three at-bats.
Game Two – UChicago 6, MIT 0
In the second game of the day, the Maroons and the Engineers were locked in a pitching duel through the first four innings. Neither side reached the scoreboard until the bottom of the fifth. But UChicago once again demonstrated its knack for offensive outbursts by scoring all six of its runs in that frame.
Freshman outfielder Serena Moss reached on a bunt to put a runner on each base with one out. Parkison then bunted for a single on her own to score freshman designated player Carly Schulz. Lopez followed with a two-run single up the gut to push the lead to 3-0. With the bases loaded once again a few batters later, freshman outfielder Maeve Garvey reached on a fielder's choice to plate another run. O'Hara forced in a fifth run by drawing a walk, and Schulz wrapped up the scoring with a RBI sacrifice fly to center field.
With a sizable lead in hand, the Maroon pitching staff finished off its second shutout in three games. Molly Moran earned her first win of the year with five innings as the starter. The sophomore compiled three strikeouts, hits and walks on the afternoon. Senior Jordan Poole worked the final two innings with four strikeouts, three walks and one hit allowed. The pitching duo stranded 10 MIT runners and worked out of a pair of bases-loaded jams in both the third and sixth innings.
UChicago tallied four hits and made two errors in the game, with Lopez posting two RBI.