EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The Drake softball team battled back-and-forth all Sunday afternoon with the Evansville Purple Aces in the series finale from James & Dorothy Cooper Stadium and eventually secured the sweep with an 11-7 win.
For the first time in the series, Evansville held a lead over Drake as it jumped ahead in the bottom of the first inning off a two-run home run.
The Bulldogs immediately matched with a two-run shot of their own in the top of the second tying the game up at 2-2.
Sam Tourtillott provided the power for Drake on her first long ball of the season.
The tie was short lived, however, as Evansville reclaimed its lead in the bottom of the frame. Another home run, this time a solo shot, put the Purple Aces back in front, 3-2.
Drake once again had an answer as the scoring continued in the third inning. The Bulldogs brought the ballgame back to even with
Tatum Aragon lacing a double in the gap to left center, which scored
Haley Schroeder, who came into the game as a pinch runner.
Evansville's power surge remained on display as the back-and-forth action moved to the bottom of the third. The Purple Aces used their third homer of the game, another two-run blast, putting the Bulldogs in a 5-3 deficit on the scoreboard.
After scoreless fourth and fifth innings, the Bulldogs dug themselves out of their deficit and took their first lead of the day in the top of the sixth.
With a pair of runners in scoring position and two outs,
Emma Dighton stepped up to the plate and provided the biggest swing of the day at that point in the game. The senior sent a fly ball out to center field that got passed the Evansville defender and rolled all the way to the wall. Dighton raced around the base paths with a full head of steam and beat the throw to the plate scoring all three runs and making the score 6-5 in favor of Drake.
In the bottom of the sixth, the Bulldogs faced a bases loaded jam with Evansville threatening to retake the lead. The Purple Aces ended up capitalizing on the opportunity as a base knock plated a pair and put them back ahead, 7-6.
Needing at least one run to extend the game, Drake was down to its last at-bats in the top of the seventh. The Bulldogs buckled down and accomplished that feat as they hung a five-spot in the inning to separate away from Evansville.
Drake loaded the bases with only one out after back-to-back singles and a walk to make way for Dighton at the plate. After fighting her way to a 3-2 count, Dighton poked a ball back up the middle forcing the Evansville defense to make a play at the plate to prevent the run from scoring. The ball ultimately got away and allowed for two runs to score giving Drake the lead back at 8-7.
The Bulldogs continued to capitalize off the Evansville error as the inning progressed.
Sami Miller smoked her second double of the day, which brought in two more runs for Drake and
Tatum Aragon collected her third hit of the afternoon with a single back up the middle to score Miller.
To close out the game, Dighton, who came into pitch back in the third inning, set the Purple Aces down in order.
Aragon and
Heidi Wheeler led the Bulldogs from a hitting standpoint with the duo each recording three hits on the day. Aragon also added two RBI while Wheeler tallied a triple and scored three runs. Miller and Tourtillott also had multi-hit outings as the pair went a combined 4-for-7 with four runs scored, two doubles, a home run, and four RBI.
Dighton was credited with the win from the pitching circle and finished with a final line of 4.2 innings pitched, five hits, two runs, two walks, and one strikeout.
Drake's next contest will be on the road against in-state foe UNI on Tuesday, April 15. First pitch from Cedar Falls on Tuesday is scheduled for 5:00 p.m.
