CRETE, Neb. – Officially, the game finished on Thursday (April 12) in Crete, Neb., between the Concordia University softball team and Doane will be recorded in history as having been played on March 22. The suspended contest picked back up in the bottom of the fifth with the Bulldogs barely holding onto a lead they built exactly three weeks ago. Concordia won, 11-10.
In that doubleheader that began on March 22, the Bulldogs dropped the first game, 8-6, in eight innings. Fifth-year head coach Todd LaVelle’s squad stands at 16-14 overall and at 5-5 in conference play.
Baily Clear resumed in the circle after working the first four innings back on March 22. She worked scoreless fifth and sixth innings before running into trouble in a drama-filled bottom of the seventh. The Tigers (23-13, 7-3 GPAC) loaded the bases with no outs for Jordyn Stearns, who drove in all three runners with a double. Suddenly, Doane had the tying run at the plate down two (11-9).
Brittany Woolridge then relieved Clear. Woolridge proceeded to allow an infield hit before striking out back-to-back hitters. Three batters later, with the bases full and Concordia hanging onto a one-run lead, Woolridge got Tiger star Jordan Van Roy to ground back to the circle for the game’s final out. Woolridge earned credit for the save.
The Bulldog offense did not score on Thursday, but their eight runs in the fourth and three in the fifth back on March 22 were enough to do the trick. Kenna Heath (2-for-4), Jamie Lefebure (2-for-3) and Mackinsey Schmidt (2-for-4) all collected two hits in the contest. Lefebure knocked in three runs while Elanna Osthoff and Schmidt notched two RBIs apiece.
A home doubleheader originally scheduled for this Saturday has now been rescheduled twice. The Concordia and Dakota Wesleyan (7-17, 3-3 GPAC) will not play this weekend due to impending inclement weather. The two sides are working on finalizing a makeup date.