It was a busy weekend for the Saginaw Valley softball team as the lady Cardinals played doubleheaders on Saturday and Sunday. Overall, the team went 3-1 on the weekend to bring its season record to 16-15 and 6-4 in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC).

Sunday matched SVSU up against Walsh College for a pair of conference games. Game one resulted in a 3-2 loss for the Cardinals as the team’s offense failed to get things going against some tough pitching. Senior infielder Marcy Medina had a strong day at the plate, knocking two pitches out of the park for home runs. The two solo shots were all the team managed in the loss, as the team failed to provide run support for pitcher Sarah Appold. The junior pitcher tossed a seven-inning complete game, striking out nine.

Vanguard photo | Jamie Loubert

First baseman Evy Lobdell gets a swing in game one against Malone University on Saturday, April 11. The redshirt freshman had four hits on the day with two hits in each game while driving in three runs. The offense was detrimental to the two-game sweep, scoring a total of 20 runs on the day while finishing with 26 hits.

“The throwing has been going well this year [for the staff],” Appold said. “Our defense has been doing very well behind our pitching staff, making it easier to pitch and feel confident that they will be behind us to make the plays.”

In the second game of the day, the team made up for its poor offensive showing by posting 10 hits and scoring eight runs in an 8-4 victory. Redshirt freshman first baseman Evy Lobdell went 3-3 on the day with two RBIs. Pitcher Sarah Vrabel tossed a complete game for the Cards, giving up eight hits and four runs, only two of which were earned.

On Saturday the team swept a two-game set away from Malone University. Game one was a high-scoring affair in which the Cards came away with a 12-7 win. Freshman Anna Conard got the nod and pitched a complete seven-inning contest to get her fourth win of the season. The freshman gave up 11 hits with five earned runs while striking out four. Offensively, Mackenzie Rousse led the offensive by recording two hits and picking up five RBIs.

The second game was an 8-4 win for SVSU. Once again, the offense carried the team by totaling 15 hits. Shelby Weeks did her job in the leadoff spot by getting on base three times, driving in three runs and hitting a home run to lead off the game. On the mound, Samantha Willman struggled with her command, walking four batters while only going a third of an inning before giving way to Appold. Appold finished the game with 6.2 innings pitched, surrendering only two hits and striking out eight.

Appold commented on the sweep saying that it was a complete team effort

“I thought we did well,” she said. “Our hitting came alive in the end of both games and our defense was able to hold them.”

Ahead for the lady Cardinals is a roadtrip to play a doubleheader against rival Grand Valley State. The first pitch of the two-game set will be at 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 15.

Appold said that in order to keep winning the team needs to play to its strengths, focus on the fundamentals while continuing to jump out on opponents.

“We just need to hit our spots and rely on our defense to be there behind us making the plays,” she said. “On offense we need to jump on the ball early and continue to hit through the rest of the season.”