KISSIMMEE, Fla. – After losing the first eight games of its spring break trip, the Grinnell College softball team was hungry.
The Pioneers fed that appetite Friday with a pair of wins at the Osceola Sports Complex, including a victory over a team that qualified for the NCAA Division III World Series just a year ago.
That 5-4 victory over Rowan University, which was ranked fifth to start the season, came in dramatic fashion in an eight-inning thriller as
Lynn Anderson earned her first career head coaching win and the Pioneers won for the first time in 2019. Grinnell followed that up with a 5-3 victory over Rutgers-Newark to complete the Florida trip on a strong note.
The win over Rowan saw Grinnell score twice in the seventh inning and add two more runs in the eighth.
Darice Wheeler '21 had one of the stronger pitching performances of her career, scattering six hits and striking out four in a complete-game effort. She now ranks eighth in program history for career strikeouts with 105.
The offense was sparked by Wheeler and
Leila Bishop-Parise '21, who each had two hits. Bishop-Parise went to work immediately, belting a one-out triple down the right field line in the top of the first inning before scoring on Wheeler's double down the left-field line.
The Pioneer defense held Rowan scoreless for three innings before the Profs scored twice in the fourth inning and again in the fifth for a 3-1 lead. But Grinnell refused to fold, as
Flynn Johnson '21 hit a one-out single to left-center in the top of the seventh before
Ashley Wehrenberg '19 blasted the fourth homer of her career, a shot over the left-field fence, to tie things at 3-all.
Grinnell held Rowan scoreless in the bottom of the seventh to force extra innings via the international tie-breaker.
Lily Seibert '19 began on second base for Grinnell and scored on Bishop-Parise's single to center.
Sidney Litke '19 and Johnson each walked to load the bases before Bishop-Parise came across on a wild pitch.
After Rowan scratched out a run with two out in the bottom of the seventh, Wheeler induced a flyout to Bishop-Parise in center field to secure the win.
That momentum carried over to the next game, as Grinnell jumped out to a 5-0 lead against Rutgers-Newark and then held on for the win.
Elle Adams '22 had another strong pitching outing, giving up five hits and fanning two. Johnson led the offense with three hits and
Mya Davis '21 added two.
The Pioneers did all their scoring in two innings. In the bottom of the first, Bishop-Parise reached base on an error, took second on a groundout, advanced to third on a wild pitch and scored when Litke reached base on a fielder's choice.
The big blow came in the third when
Emily Jordan '19 had an inside-the-park grand slam. With two out, Johnson singled through the right side and advanced on a wild pitch. Wehrenberg then walked and Davis singled to left field, loading the bases for Jordan. She stepped to the plate and delivered a shot to right field that got by the fielder. Jordan sprinted around the bases to put Grinnell up 5-0.
Rutgers-Newark scored a run in the sixth and two in the seventh before Grinnell shut the door to improve to 2-10 on the season. During the day, Wehrenberg moved up to ninth on Grinnell's career homer list with four and seventh for career walks with 36.
Grinnell travels to Dubuque Tuesday to face Loras College. The first of two games is set for 3 p.m.
