KISSIMMEE, Fla. - Junior Lori Knopf fashioned a gem against Upper Iowa on Tuesday morning at the Osceola County Softball Complex, allowing just two hits while striking out seven in an 8-0 victory over the Peacocks, but the Lady Raiders fell victim to five errors and a seven-run inning to Minnesota State-Mankato in an 8-0 loss to the No. 17-ranked Mavericks.
In game one, Shippensburg (7-7) was tied with the Peacocks through three-and-a-half innings before plating runs in the final three innings to earn its victory in six.
In the bottom of the fourth, freshman #Maggie Sander# replaced freshman Hope Cornell after a walk and scored on an RBI-triple from freshman Courtney Steele.
With one out, sophomore Lisamarie Ramagli singled home Steele to give Shippensburg a 2-0 lead.
A scary moment occurred in the top of the fifth inning when senior #Amanda Bardo# collided with fellow senior Sarah Stengl and the duo remained on the ground while the batter reached third on a triple. Bardo left the game, but recovered in time to start against Mankato later in the day.
Knopf worked her way out of the jam by inducing a short fly ball to centerfield and weak grounders to third and back to the circle to keep the score at 2-0.
Bardo's replacement, sophomore Oceanna DeBaro, laced a double into right field and then scored on a throwing error off Knopf's subsequent sacrifice. Stengl, who finished the game 2-for-2 with a walk, drove home Cornell later in the inning to give the Lady Raiders a 4-0 lead.
Shippensburg induced the run rule by scoring four runs in the bottom of the sixth, all with no outs. After a fielding error with two runners on led to a run, Knopf blooped a single over the first baseman that led to two more runs and a bases-loaded walk by freshman Moira Johnsen gave the Lady Raiders their eighth run.
Knopf pitched all six innings, allowing just two hits and one walk while striking out a season-high seven batters. At the plate, she contributed two RBIs and has delivered 10 through 14 games.
The Lady Raiders had a difficult defensive performance in game two, committing five errors through the first five innings, but still only managed to trail just 1-0 heading into the sixth. Shippensburg had several runners into scoring position, but the team stranded eight runners on base without sending a runner across the plate.
Senior Jill Kirbypitched five marvelous innings against the Mavericks, allowing just one unearned run and three hits to keep Shippensburg in the game. The only run came in the fourth inning on a dropped fly ball to center.
In the bottom of the sixth, Kirby struck out the leadoff batter before the Mavericks strung together seven consecutive hits, including two on bunts. Mankato capped off the barrage with a two-run single up the middle that ended the game prematurely.
Shippensburg is back in action at the Osceola County Complex on Wednesday with a 1:00 p.m., matchup against No. 2-ranked SIU-Edwardsville before taking on Southwest Minnesota State at 5:00 p.m.
- Lady Raider Softball -
