GREELEY, Colo. – Drake University softball began their 5-game stint Rocky Mountain country with two Saturday contests against South Dakota State and Northern Colorado. The Bulldogs battled in both games but could not get over the hump with two losses.
South Dakota State 5, Drake 3
The Jackrabbits got the scoring started in Saturday's opener with a run in each of the first two innings. They added to their hot start in the fourth, plating two more on an Emma Christensen double and Bria Riebel single.
Drake rallied late, scraping a run across in the fifth when
Pearson Hall doubled to right center to bring
Ava Husak home, making the score 4-1 in the Jackrabbits' favor.
SDSU added an insurance run in the sixth, but Drake matched with another RBI double, this time off the bat of
Malea Yoxsimer. The Bulldogs did their best to keep the comeback alive in the waning stages as Hall homered. But the Dogs ran out of gas as South Dakota State secured the 5-3 result.
Hall and Yoxsimer each recorded two hits vs. SDSU to lead the Bulldog offense. Hall's pair of RBIs were also tops on the Drake roster.
Peyton Driscoll threw all seven games for the Bulldogs, striking out three and walking three as she was assigned the loss.
Northern Colorado 7, Drake 1
Drake could not muster as much offense in the second game of the day as Northern Colorado owned the first half of the match. The Bears plated two runs in the first inning and three more in the second to establish a comfortable early advantage.
The Bulldogs got more production from
Pearson Hall in the third with her second long ball of the day, but that proved to be Drake's lone run of the game.
Northern Colorado added two more runs in the fifth inning to put the final nail in the coffin for the 7-1 score.
Drake's weekend in Colorado will continue with two more contests on Sunday. The Dogs will again battle SDSU at 11 a.m. before visiting Colorado State at 4 p.m.
