Pagan Grand Slam, Morales RBI Propel Peregrine Softball to Split at ONU
A grand slam by Holly Pagan and clutch hitting from Alex Morales were the deciding factors in the 5-4 Game 1 win over Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference opponent Olivet Nazarene Tuesday afternoon.
The Peregrines (18-21, 7-7) split with the Tigers (20-11-1, 8-5-1) after falling in Game 2, 4-2.
Sophomore Holly Pagan (Bartlett, Ill./Bartlett) led the Peregrines with a pair of hits including a grand slam while Alex Morales (Bartlett, Ill./Bartlett) went 3-for-8 at the plate including the game-winning RBI in the top half of the seventh in Game 1.
Game 1: Peregrines 5, Olivet Nazarene 4
After the Tigers took an early 4-0 lead in the first two innings of play, the Peregrines would come back to even the score in the top of the third inning thanks to Holly Pagan’s grand slam.
Both teams would remain scoreless until the seventh inning, when Alex Morales notched what would be a game-winning RBI-single, which scored Taylor Kotzo (Munster, Ind./Munster).
Morales is familiar with game-winning hits at Tiger Field, dating back to last season when she crushed a game-winning home run in the top of the seventh inning to defeat the Tigers on March 18, 2015.
Carly Murphy (Munster, Ind./Munster) earned her ninth win of the season, throwing a complete game and allowing three earned runs while striking out three.
Kotzo also led the Peregrines offense, going 2-for-3 at the plate with a pair of runs scored.
Game 2: Olivet Nazarene 4, Peregrines 2
The Tigers plated the first two runs of the game, thanks to a double by Emily Carstens and a Kira Madi fielder’s choice to put ONU up 2-0.
The Peregrines would cut their deficit to one, after Olivia Sardella (Dyer, Ind./Lake Central) ripped a double to right center to score Jessica Loy (Skokie, Ill./Niles North).
ONU would tack on two more runs in the fifth inning, after Madi brought in another run and Megan Semro stole home to put the Tigers up 4-1.
Junior Allyson Leach (Demotte, Ind.) would notch and RBI-double to score Tessa Steffens (Litchfield, Ill./Litchfield) in the top of the sixth, but that was the last run scored by either team as the Tigers came away with the 4-2 win.
Holly Pagan suffered the loss for the Peregrines, but only allowed a pair of earned runs and struck out seven batters in six innings of work.
Purdue Calumet will return to action tomorrow, April 20, when they take on Purdue North Central in a CCAC doubleheader starting at 3:00 p.m.