CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – It was a rare Monday version of the in-state rivalry between Drake and UNI on the softball diamond as the Bulldogs and Panthers matched up for a doubleheader from the Robinson-Dresser Sports Complex. Originally scheduled for Tuesday, the twin bill was pushed up a day due to forecasted weather. Drake won the first game of the day, 14-5, while UNI took game two, 18-1.
Drake 14, UNI 5
The Bulldogs broke out their big bats in the first game of the day and used six home runs across the contest to produce the victory.
Tatum Aragon started the home run derby for the Bulldogs in the first inning with a solo blast, which was also her first homer of the season. After UNI tied the game in the bottom of the first, Drake was right back in front as
Pearson Hall went deep with a solo shot of her own in the second.
While Drake was held scoreless in the third and fourth innings, UNI jumped in front putting up one run each in those innings to make it a 3-2 ballgame. Sykora Smith singled in a run and Skylar Benesh hit a solo home run to produce the scoring for the Panthers.
The homers picked back up in the fifth for Drake, however. Aragon tallied her second of the day, a two-run bomb, to give the lead back to Drake and
Ava Husak followed in the next at-bat for back-to-back long balls.
The Bulldogs were right back to dishing out more damage in the sixth inning when they broke the game open with a 5-run frame. Three of those runs came off one swing of the bat of
Frankie Rita, who tallied her second homer of the season. Moments later, Hall kept her good day at the plate going with a two-RBI single and Drake was now ahead 10-3.
Despite UNI getting two runs back in the bottom of the sixth with Benesh notching her second homer of the game, Drake's offense continued the onslaught with a four-run seventh inning to put a Panther comeback out of reach. Once again, Aragon found a pitch to her liking and sent it out of the park for her third home run of the game on another two-run shot and Hall's hot bat was right back to work a couple batters later smacking a two-RBI triple, which left her just a double shy of the cycle.
From the circle, Drake's
Peyton Driscoll went the distance for a complete game and earned her second win of the season. The junior tossed a total of 144 pitches and tallied a season-high eight strikeouts against the potent Panther lineup.
UNI 18, Drake 1
The script was flipped in game two as UNI was the side that went on the offensive explosion this time around.
Drake was down 5-0 in the first inning with the Panthers knocking Bulldog starting pitcher
Ashlynn Sheets out of the game early. The Panthers used a pair of RBI doubles and pair of RBI singles to grab the early lead.
UNI then took a page out of Drake's playbook and proceeded to hit seven home runs across innings two, three, and four. The Panthers hit five home runs in the third inning alone and plated nine runs in the frame putting the run rule into effect.
Drake's lone run of the contest came in the third off a
Kiley Kindelspire base knock.
The Bulldogs will return home to host Valparaiso for a weekend series starting on Friday, April 17. Drake and Valpo will play a doubleheader on Friday with game ones first pitch from Buel Field slated for 2:30 p.m.
