By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
The Washburn University softball team used a pair of strong pitching performances from Sadie Walker and Jaycee Ginter to a doubleheader sweep over Northwest Missouri on Friday at Gahnstrom Field, winning 3-1 and 6-0.
Senior Jaycee Ginter threw a three-hitter with 12 strikeouts and hit a three-run home run in Friday's 6-0 Washburn win over Northwest Missouri. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Sophomore Sadie Walker picked up the pitching win in Washburn's 3-1 first-game victory over Northwest Missouri on Friday. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
The Ichabods will wrap up the weekend with a Saturday home twinbill against Missouri Western starting at 12 p.m.
Walker, a sophomore, went the distance in the opener striking out five allowing seven hits and one earned run while Ginter, a senior, threw a three-hitter in the second game while recording 12 strikeouts and hitting a three-run home run.
The Bearcats took the early lead in the top of the third of the opener after a single and triple but Washburn knotted the score in the fourth taking advantage of a pair of Bearcat errors.
Alexis Tanguma started things off with a single and after Gracie Gallagher entered as a pinch runner, Ginter's sac bunt moved Gallagher to second. After Autymn Schreiner reached on a throwing error, Jaden LaBarge also reached on a throwing error, scoring Gallagher to tie the score.
In the fifth, the Ichabods' Erin Boles singled to left and then moved to second after the Bearcats (16-18 overall, 5-5 MIAA) committed their third error of the game. After Tanguma reached on a single to deep shortstop, Ginter drove in Boles with a sac fly as the Ichabods went up 2-1.
Washburn (28-10, 9-5) added another run in the sixth, wrapping up the scoring when Madi Moore connected on a two-out double to left-center and Mariah Wheeler's ground-rule double down the left field line scored Moore.
Boles, Tanguma and Moore had each had two hits as the Ichabods finished with seven overall.
Ginter struck out the side in the Bearcats' first at bat of the nightcap and Washburn used a walk by Boles and a single by Tanguma to set the stage for a three-run homer from Ginter to stake the Ichabods to a 3-0 lead.
Both teams would go scoreless until the Ichabods added three more runs in the fifth inning.
Tanguma started the inning with a single to center and after Gallagher entered as a pinch runner and a walk drawn by Ginter, Danielle Schlader had a pinch-hit single to score Gallagher.
Moore then singled, scoring Zoey Quinn, who entered as a pinch runner for Schlader. Kinlei Boley drew a pinch-hit walk and after Ellington Hogle's RBI fielder's choice scored Quinn, the Ichabods moved their lead to 6-0.
In the sixth and seventh innings, Ginter struck out three more giving her 12 for the game while throwing 80 pitches with 61 for strikes and scattering three hits.
Ginter had 3 RBI in the game scoring two runs drawing two walks raising her batting average to .457 on the season. Tanguma and Hogle each had two hits in the win.
