Elsah, ILL. -- Today the Principia Panthers faced Iowa Wesleyan for their first conference games of the season. After a tough week at Myrtle Beach, the Panthers were ready to get back on the field and do some damage.
Game 1: Principia 1 Iowa 6
The Panthers were focused and ready to play ball once again after a few days off coming back from Spring Break. The first game against Iowa didn't go as planned and the Panthers struggled during a few of the innings.
Out of seven innings the Panthers played really well in all of them except the second. In the second inning the defense had a hard time making plays and had several errors that cost them runs. The defense rushed in trying to make outs as throws got away and plays were not made all the way through. Even though they struggled in that one inning, the Panthers fought all the way until the end and didn't let Iowa score again until the fourth inning when only one run came in.
Leah Schaefer battled hard at the mound and gave everything she had to each batter.
Offensively the batters saw a faster pitcher today then they have all season and it threw them off guard a bit. It took the team several innings to make their adjustments to the pitches being thrown. After a few innings went by, several of the players made adjustments and started to make contact with the ball. Not everyone made it on base, but balls were put in play that the Iowa defense had to make outs on. Freshman
Delaney Gatine and senior
Genie Nyiramana both had singles and
Leah Schaefer had a triple.
Game 2: Principia 5 Iowa 13
After a rough game one, the Panthers wanted revenge on game two. Both teams would have about the same line up in batting that they would have to face, but Iowa did change their pitcher.
The Panthers only played five innings in the second game. Iowa came to battle and the Panthers were having a hard time keeping up. The defense only made a few mistakes but it was enough for Iowa to take advantage of and score some runs.
Leah Schaefer started off on the mound and played a solid four innings, then
Alyssa Hudenburg came in and finished off the game. Iowa put up four runs in the first inning, six in the third, and three in the fourth. The Panthers weren't able to respond enough to catch up on the scoreboard after Iowa Welseyan's strong start.
The Panthers did have a good offensive start by replying with two runs of their own after Iowa put up four in the first inning. After the first inning, though, the Panthers would not score again until the fifth inning when junior
Hannah Hathaway hit a three run homerun. Delaney, Alyssa, and
Lauren Daugherty all had singles and Leah had a double in the game.
Up Next:
The Panthers play at home on March 26th at 6pm and 8pm against Westminster College.
