FRESNO, Calif. -- The Drake
University softball team won an 8-1 decision over Idaho
State before falling, 2-1, to host Fresno State
Saturday at the Bayer Crop Science Classic. The Bulldogs moved their record to
10-9 overall.
Drake, led
by a brilliant pitching performance from freshman Jordan Gronewold (Carlisle,
Iowa), topped Idaho State, 8-1, in its second-straight game against the
Bengals. Gronewold tossed a complete game and allowed one run on just two hits
while striking out five for her first official collegiate victory.
The Bulldog
offense piled up 14 hits, including three by sophomore Lindsey Vande Wall (Prairie City, Iowa).
Vande Wall added three runs to lead the squad.
Junior
Torey Craddock (Tucson, Ariz.) went 2-for-4 with a run and three RBI
to pace Drake from the three-hole. Gronewold helped her cause with two RBI.
Senior Jenna DeLong (Dalton Gardens,
Idaho) scored three times on two
hits from the leadoff position.
Senior
pitcher Brynne Dordel (Chanhassen,
Minn.), fresh off her
first-career no-hitter, was brilliant in the circle in game two; a 2-1 loss to
No. 28 Fresno State. The senior allowed two runs (one earned) on six hits while
striking out two in six innings of work to give Drake a chance at toppling the
hosts.
The
Bulldogs managed just three hits off Fresno
State pitcher Michelle Moses; one each
from DeLong, freshman Nicole Randel (Alpine, Calif.)
and Jaimie Duffek (Brookfield,
Ill.).
Randel
knotted the game at 1-1 in the fifth on an infield RBI single by Duffek. Fresno State
retook the lead in the sixth and held the Bulldogs in the seventh for the win.
Drake meets
No. 11 California Sunday at 1:30 p.m.