Softball tops Bowling Green in doubleheader, extends win streak to nine
Softball Team walking back to dugout celebrating win streak at on Mar. 24 at Margo Stadium
On a beautiful day for softball, the Central Michigan softball team looked great once again.
Senior pitcher Rachael Knapp and sophomore first baseman Erika Underwood delivered for the Chippewas as they opened Mid-American Conference play with two wins against Bowling Green Friday.
CMU extended its win streak to nine and improved its overall record of 17-7 on the season. The Chippewas have now won 16 out of its last 17 games.
Game 1: CMU 7, Bowling Green 1
Underwood stole the show for the Chippewas as the sophomore had three hits and three RBI’s in the first game of the afternoon.
Coming off of a home run in CMU's last game, Underwood stayed hot and looked confident at the plate.
“I’m being more aggressive and I’m going after all the strikes I see,” Underwood said.
Knapp was dominant once again in the circle completing the shutout for the Chippewas. Knapp finished with nine strikeouts giving her 139 strikeouts on the season and improved her personal record to 10-3.
Senior catcher Danielle Marlink also had two hits. CMU outhit Bowling Green 10-3.
Game 2: CMU 3, Bowling Green 1
For the second straight game, the Chippewas outhit Bowling Green notching 10 hits. CMU took the early lead when Underwood drove a ball into right field scoring junior Sydney Heath, putting the Chippewas up 1-0 to start off the first.
The Chippewas then added runs in both the fourth and fifth inning, which was enough to prevail in the win.
Base running was key for the Chippewas this afternoon as they stole bases and moved their runners into scoring position.
“We spend a lot of time on base running,” said head coach Margo Jonker. “I believe that was one of the biggest differences in the game for us. We executed on that better than they did today.”
Junior pitcher Hanna Warren struck out seven batters and improved to 5-4 on the season.
Junior catcher Maison Kalina went 3-3, while Underwood added two hits, and recorded two RBI’s to finished the day with five total.
Up next:
CMU will play its final game of the weekend Saturday at 1:00 p.m. against Bowling Green at Margo Jonker Stadium.
