FOND du LAC, Wis. - The Regents softball team played its final road Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference games on Saturday when they visited the Marian University Sabres. It was a tough day for Rockford as the Regents lost both games of the doubleheader. Game one was a low-scoring pitchers' duel while game two featured 20 run on 26 hits.
Senior Sarah Moritz (Heyworth, Ill.) once again had another outstanding performance inside the circle for Rockford. Moritz allowed just 2 runs on 4 hits while striking out 2 and walking none. Unfortunately, she got very little run support and took another tough-luck loss.
Offensively the Regents had multiple chances to score runs but were only able to capitalize on one of them. The first of those opportunities came in the second inning. Sarah Moritz and Ali Moore (Mascoutah, Ill.) strung together back-to-back two-out singles putting runners on first and second base. However, the Regents were unable to take advantage as the next batter grounded out to end the innings.
Rockford was once again knocking on the door in the fourth inning. Brittany Bura (Chicago, Ill.), Stefaney Kenworthy (Veedersburg, Ind.) and Sarah Moritz each singled in the inning to load the bases with just one out. Unfortunately Marian retired the next two batters via a strikeout and a fly out to end the threat.
The Regents were finally able to break through in the top of the sixth inning and tie the game at 1-1. Rockford took advantage of two errors to begin the inning before Sarah Moritz tied the game with an RBI groundout. However, Marian did not allow the Regents to add any additional runs and take the lead as Rockford stranded two more runners on base.
The game was ultimately decided in the bottom of seventh. Marian led off the inning with a double, and then recorded a single two batters later to put runners on the corners with only one out. Rockford retired the next batter to bring them within one out of getting out of the jam and forcing extra innings. Unfortunately, Rockford was called for an illegal pitch during the next at bat allowing the runner on third to score as the Sabres won game one by a 2-1 final.
Game two got off to a much better start as the Regents led at multiple points during the first few innings. Rockford struck first with a run in the opening frame. Following a one-out walk and a groundout, Maranda Walker (Rockford, Ill.) gave her team its first lead of the game with an RBI single into center field. The lead did not last long though as Marian answered with two runs in the bottom half of the inning to take a 2-1 lead.
Rockford responded with 3 runs off 5 hits in the top of the second inning to retake the lead. Following a one-out Ali Moore single, freshman Sarah Rizzo (Monee, Ill.) tied the game with an RBI double. The Regents then loaded the bases with infield singles from Lynn Blakeley-Snyder (Winnebago, Ill.) and Alexandra Storey (Dexter, Mich.). One batter later, Lisa Blakeley-Snyder (Winnebago, Ill.) gave her team its largest lead of the game with a 2-run double into left field.
Marian would answer with a run in the bottom half of the inning before Rockford pushed its lead to 5-3 with a run in the top of the third. After a pair of Marian errors put runners on the corners, Sarah Rizzo drove in a run with a fly ball into right field. From that moment forward, things took a turn for the worse for Rockford as the Sabres outscored the Regents 11-1 over the next few innings en route to a 14-6 win.
The Rockford University softball team returns to the diamond on Sunday, April 26 at Lawrence University. First pitch of the doubleheader is set for 1:00 PM.
