DUBUQUE, IOWA – The Luther College softball team hit a bit of a snag in its quest for the American Rivers Conference (A-R-C) title on Tuesday. In their first midweek doubleheader of the season, the Norse split their two-game series against Loras College, winning game one 6-2 behind a two home run game from junior catcher Abby Spore (Cedar Rapids, Iowa / Kennedy). Luther's rally in game two, though, came up just short, as the Norse fell to 22-4 on the season and 3-1 in A-R-C play with a 4-2 loss.
GAME ONE: #24 LUTHER (6) vs. LORAS (2)
Luther opened game one with a bang, hitting two home runs in the top of the first to take an early 3-0 lead. After Belle Berg (Chatfield, Minn. / Chatfield) reached on an error by the left fielder, the stage was set for three-hitter Abby Spore (Cedar Rapids, Iowa / Kennedy), who blasted her first home run in A-R-C play to give the Norse an early 2-0 advantage. Leah Crown (Plato, Minn. / Central) made it 3-0 just two batters later, as she tallied her second homer of the season to make it 3-0 Luther after the top of the first.
Loras responded by scoring an unearned run in the bottom of the first, cutting the Norse lead to 3-1 after one. That lead would hold until the top of the fifth, when Luther would add to its three run lead. After Spore reached on an error to open the inning, her pinch runner, Ken Vavricheck (Bloomington, Minn. / The Blake School) scored from first on an RBI double from Riley Sauser (Ely, Iowa / Cedar Rapids Prairie), extending the Norse lead to 4-1. Like in the bottom of the first, the Duhawks responded by scoring a run of their own, cutting the Luther lead to 4-2 after five.
Spore singlehandedly extended the Norse lead back to three runs, as she blasted her second home run of the game, a solo shot to left center, in the top of the seventh to regain a 5-2 advantage for Luther. A sacrifice fly by Chloe Wagner (Blair, Wis. / Blair-Taylor) gave fifth year senior Kendra Cooper (Lansing, Iowa / Kee) a four run cushion, as it gave the Norse a 6-2 lead after six and a half innings of play. That was all Cooper needed to ensure victory for the Norse, as she sent the Duhawks down in order in the bottom of the seventh to clinch Luther's 6-2 game one win.
GAME TWO: #24 LUTHER (2) vs. LORAS (4)
The Norse once again scored the first run of the ball game, though they were forced to wait until the second inning to do so. Thanks to small ball and patience at the plate, Luther managed to load the bases with two outs, as Crown, Vavrichek and Katie Brennan (Lansing, Iowa / Kee) all managed to reach base on either errors or walks. A third walk to Berg was particularly painful for Loras, as she reached base on balls with the bases loaded, scoring Crown from third to make it 1-0 Norse in the top of the second.
The Duhawks responded in kind, tying the game at 1-1 on a squeeze bunt in the bottom of the second. Unfortunately, Loras would score the next few runs of the game, as a two-out single and home run gave the Duhawks a 4-1 lead in the bottom of the third. Luther struggled to respond, as the Norse were sent down in order in the top of the fourth and fifth innings.
Still, Sam Thompson (West Salem, Wis. / West Salem) did her job as a relief pitcher, holding the Loras bats at bay and giving Luther a chance to tie or take a lead. However, the senior had no power over the Norse bats, which struggled mightily against Ashlyn Hemm. The Duhawks' game two starter held Luther to just one hit through five innings and had six strikeouts before the start of the sixth. However, that's when the Norse seemingly started to figure her out. Spore drew a leadoff walk to open the inning before a single by Crown put runners on first and second with no outs. However, Loras got lucky on the next batter, as Anna Forari (Bettendorf, Iowa / Bettendorf) popped out to the shortstop and Alison Martinez (Brighton, Colo. / Brighton) was out on the play, resulting in the end of the rally for Luther.
However, the seventh proved to be a good inning for the Norse, as they managed to put runners on first and second with one out on the board. Back-to-back singles by Vavrichek and Raven Allen (Birmingham, Ala. / Birmingham) put a runner in scoring position for Berg, who laced a single down the right field line to score Vavrichek from second, cutting the Duhawk lead to 4-2. Two batters later, Spore found herself walking down to first base, leaving the bases loaded and two outs for Riley Sauser (Ely, Iowa / Cedar Rapids Prairie). The sophomore hit a deep fly to center field but just missed a clutch home run, as Loras' center fielder made the catch in deep right center to clinch the 4-2 win.
TOP NORSE
- Abby Spore (Cedar Rapids, Iowa / Kennedy) put up big numbers at the plate for Luther, going 2-4 in game one with two homers, two runs and three RBI. Spore was also 1-2 at the plate in game two.
- Kendra Cooper (Lansing, Iowa / Kee) improved to 12-2 on the season and 2-0 in A-R-C play. The fifth year senior additionally pitched her 11th complete game of the season, surrendering two runs on four hits in seven innings of work.
- Leah Crown (Plato, Minn. / Central) and Ken Vavrichek (Bloomington, Minn. / The Blake School) scored the lone runs for the Norse in game two, as Crown went 1-3 at the plate and Vavrichek 1-2.
- Olivia Engler (Atlantic, Iowa / Atlantic) fell to 2-1 this season, as she suffered the loss in game two.
UP NEXT
The schedule only picks up from here on out for the Norse, who are scheduled to take on Nebraska-Wesleyan this upcoming Saturday. First pitch of game one is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. CT in Lincoln, Nebraska.
