From Washington University Athletics
The No. 2-ranked Washington University in St. Louis softball team concluded a 16-game road trip to Florida with a pair of lopsided wins Tuesday at the NTC Games in Clermont, Fla.
The Bears posted a 12-1 win in five innings over Becker College in game one, and then posted a 10-1 five-inning victory over MCLA in the second game.
Junior Janet Taylor went 5-for-6 with three runs scored and three RBIs in the two wins, while senior Brooke Hofer was 5-for-7 with two RBIs. Junior Hannah Mehrle batted leadoff for the first time in her career and went 4-for-6 with three runs scored and six RBIs. The Bears hit .518 (29-of-56) as a team in the two wins.
#2 WashU 12, Becker 1 (Five Innings)
Mehrle went 3-for-4 with a run scored and a career-high four RBIs and Taylor was 3-for-4 with two runs scored as WashU had a season-high 16 in the game one victory.
The Bears jumped out to a 3-1 after two innings following RBI doubles by freshman Taylor Arends and Hofer, and an RBI single by Mehrle. The lead grew to 6-1 after scoring three in the third, highlighted by junior Halle Steinberg's RBI single.
WashU put the game out of reach scoring six runs on seven hits in the fourth. Mehrle had the big hit of the inning, a bases-clearing triple.
Arends (2-for-4, two runs scored, RBI), Hofer (2-for-4, RBI) and junior Kenzie James (2-for-3, RBI) also had multi-hit games for WashU.
Sophomore Mackenzie Gauden (2-0) picked up the win allowing two hits and one earned run in three innings pitched, while sophomore Anna McKee allowed one hit and struck out six in two innings.
#2 WashU 10, MCLA 1 (Five Innings)
Sophomore Maggie Clapp (5-2) tossed a complete-game in game two allowing four hits and one unearned run. The Bears had 13 hits in the victory.
Hofer was 3-for-3 with an RBI, while Taylor was 2-for-2 with a run scored and three RBIs and Arends was 2-for-3 with a run scored and an RBI. Sophomore Ashley Madsen was 2-for-2 with three runs scored and an RBI from the No. 9 hole.
WashU scored three runs in its first at-bat on RBI singles by Arends and Hofer, and an RBI double by Taylor. Arends drove in Taylor with an RBI single in the second to push the lead to 4-0.
The Bears added four runs in the third to extend the lead to 8-1. Madsen drove in a run with an RBI single, and Taylor pushed across two runs with a single to left. In the fifth, Madsen led off with a single and then Mehrle hit a walk-off homerun to end the game.
WashU opens a six-game homestand by hosting the Mizuno Invitational Saturday-Sunday, March 19-20, at the WU Softball Field. The Bears take on Wartburg College (3-9) Saturday at Noon and Augustana College (7-7) at 2 p.m.
BEAR NOTEBOOK: Mehrle (.545) and Taylor (.476) are the top two hitters in the UAA … WashU picked up career win No. 510 against MCLA … Taylor is two hits shy of 100 for her career … Taylor leads the team with 11 multi-hit games, while Hofer is second with 10 … Arends has reached base in all 20 games this season … The Bears have recorded double figure hit totals in 14 of 20 games … Mehrle triple against Becker was her NCAA Division III leading fifth of the year and 10th all-time, third most in school history.