CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – The Drake softball team was back in action on Saturday for a non-conference double-header at the UNI-Dome Tournament. The Bulldogs split Saturday's action with a loss to Omaha to open the day and a victory over Iowa State to complete the weekend sweep of the Cyclones.
Both Bulldog contests on Saturday were decided by just one run.
Drake will conclude their play at the UNI-Dome Tournament tomorrow with two more non-conference tilts. The Bulldogs will face off against Omaha before battling South Dakota to finish the weekend.
Game 1: Omaha 2, Drake 1
Both Omaha and Drake battled through a defensive seven innings in the first matchup of the day. After taking an early lead, Drake maintained a 1-0 advantage into the sixth inning.
Eventually, undefeated Omaha was able to manufacture two runs and earned a walk-off win to remain blemish-free to start the season.
Drake got on the board first when
Sami Miller scored on an Omaha error after an
Aubree Beitzinger base knock. Both Beitzinger and
Emma Dighton advanced on the miscue but the Bulldogs could not plate another run the rest of the way.
Dighton pitched her way through 6.1 innings and struck out five Mavericks as Drake maintained their narrow 1-0 advantage. In the sixth frame, Omaha went to work at the dish, plating the game-tying run on a Rachel Weber sacrifice fly to bring Maggie O'Brien home.
Omaha rode their momentum into the final frame, staving off the Bulldog offense in the top half of the inning. Sydney Ross then reached safely and was eventually driven in by an Alex Olson single to center.
Beitzinger led the Bulldogs at the plate, going 2-for-3 with a run driven in.
Dighton starred for Drake with a spectacular showing in the circle while also drawing a pair of walks in the batter's box. She is now 1-1 on the season.
Game 2: Drake 4, Iowa State 3
The Bulldogs bounced back after suffering their first loss of the season with a massive in-state victory over Iowa State. Drake's 4-3 triumph completed a weekend sweep of the Cyclones.
Drake got things going early again, scoring the game's first run on a
Sami Miller groundout.
Emily Valtman crossed home safely on Miller's putout.
Two innings later, in the third, both teams were able to produce. Iowa State knotted the score on a Mikayla Ramos double to plate pinch runner Angelica Gonzalez. Drake countered in the home half of the third with a single by
MaKayla Rice to bring Valtman home for the second time of the game.
Leading 2-1,
Aubree Beitzinger singled Miller home in the fourth inning to extend the Bulldogs' lead. Drake added another run in the fifth frame when
Delaney Taylor's back knock delivered Rice across the dish.
The Cyclones refused to go away quietly, however, drawing closer in the sixth. Tiana Poole singled in Olivia Wardlow before a sacrifice fly off the bat of Camille Marin plated Sophie Maras to cut the deficit to just one run.
After six masterful innings from
Jayme Scheck, junior
Emma Richards came on in relief and slammed the door on Iowa State, 4-3. Scheck picked up the win, her first of the season, while striking out three ISU batters. Richards also fanned two while earning the save, her first of the year.
MaKayla Rice went 2-for-2 in the Saturday nightcap to lead the Drake offense. Valtman's two runs also topped the Bulldog lineup.
