HAMMOND, Ind. - With the GLIAC Tournament under a week away, the Davenport University softball team is getting hot at just the right time. The Panthers pushed their winning streak to eight on Saturday with a doubleheader sweep at Purdue Northwest thanks to scores of 7-5 and 3-0.
Davenport (24-20, 16-10 GLIAC) has moved up to third place in the league standings while Purdue Northwest (24-16, 13-11 GLIAC) has dropped four games in a row and five of its last six. Next up for the Panthers are the final games of the regular season with a home doubleheader against Parkside on Monday set to begin at 3 p.m.
In game one, Davenport won a slugfest (12 combined runs on 22 hits) and needed 13 base knocks to get it done. Five Panthers registered multiple hits including
Rachel Griffin (2-for-3, 2 R, 1 BB),
Ellie Muilenburg (2-for-2, 1 R),
Rylie Kalina (2-for-4, 2 RBIs),
Lindsay Goodman (2-for-3, 3 RBIs), and
Monica Meger (2-for-3, 1 RBI).
In the circle,
Emma Miller got the start but received a decision after giving up four runs, three earned, on five hits in 2.1 innings pitched with no walks and two strikeouts. In four and two-thirds frames of relief, Muilenburg (11-10) surrendered just one unearned run on four hits with two free passes and six punchouts.
In the nightcap, Muilenburg handled the pitching duties with seven shutout innings on four hits, only one walk and eight strikeouts. The right-hander has now won or received a no decision in seven-consecutive outings and 10 of her last 11.
Offensively,
Brooke Cowan brought in
Brooke Bernt with a sacrifice fly to foul territory in right field in the third inning, which is where the scoring would stand until the seventh. There, Davenport added a pair of insurance runs as Muilenburg singled in
Anelise Worden and Goodman singled in Muilenburg two batters later.
Story by:
Cooper Weidenthaler
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