PLYMOUTH, Wisconsin – After a nearly four-week layoff, the Ripon softball program returned to action on Tuesday afternoon, though the Red Hawks dropped a pair of games at Lakeland on the Muskie Softball Field.
In the opener, Ripon (2-12) fell 13-10 in a highly entertaining offensive battle. In the nightcap, Lakeland (20-4) won its 11th-consecutive game, 8-0, in five innings.
The Red Hawk bats wasted no time jumping on Lakeland early in game one. Five runs crossed the plate in the top of the second – with runners on second and third and one out,
Sydney Swanson drove home
Samantha Nicholson and Ripon was on the board. The next at-bat,
Kayla Cruz singled up the middle, scoring
Hadley Berendsen, to double the Red Hawks' lead.
After
Abrianna Anderson reached via an error,
Anna Bauer was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to bring home another. With two outs in the inning,
Savannah Barajas hit a clutch, two-run single to cap off Ripon's biggest inning of the season thus far.
The Muskies responded with a crooked number of their own in the bottom of the inning, taking the lead with a six-spot. Seven hits, including three triples, highlighted the inning for Lakeland.
Lakeland tacked on three more in the bottom of the third to stretch its lead. A pair of RBI singles, coupled with a two-out, RBI double, gave the Muskies a 9-5 lead through three innings.
Ripon countered in the top of the fourth, however. With runners on second and third and one out, Barajas drove home another run and Ripon remained in business. The Red Hawks added another on a sacrifice fly by Nicholson to shave their deficit in half with half of the game yet to be played.
Unfortunately, Lakeland regained a four-run lead with two more in the bottom of the fourth. Still, Ripon would not go away. Back-to-back doubles by Hablewitz and Berendsen in the top of the fifth brought Ripon within three, though Berendsen was stranded to end the inning as Ripon failed to inch closer.
Hablewitz drove home
MariaFernanda Lerma with two outs in the top of the sixth, though Ripon stranded the tying run on base in the inning.
Trailing 13-10 in the top of the seventh, Swanson and Cruz got the inning going with a double and single, respectively. Anderson scored Swanson on a sacrifice fly and, after Bauer was hit by a pitch, the tying run was at the dish with one out. However, a double play ended the rally and the game in favor of the Muskies.
Offensively, Barajas (3-for-4, 3 RBI), Hablewitz (3-for-4, RBI, run) and Swanson (3-for-4, RBI, 2 run) all had impressive outings at the plate. It was Hablewitz's fifth career three-hit game, Swanson's second and Barajas's first.
Lerma (2-for-4, 2 runs, walk) and Cruz (2-for-5, RBI) also had multi-hit outings.
As a team, the Red Hawks pounded out 15 hits – the program's most since racking up 17 against Lawrence on April 28, 2023.
Kalen Berger took the loss on the mound, throwing six innings while giving up 16 hits and 12 earned runs.
In the afternoon finale, a two-run double and a pair of sacrifice flies put Lakeland up 4-0 after the first inning of play. The Muskies added two more in the bottom of the second, aided by a pair of Ripon errors, to lead 6-0 through two innings. Two more runs came in on a two-run double in the bottom of the third as Lakeland extended its advantage.
Ripon mustered just five hits in the second game of the twinbill – one in each inning. Barajas and Berendsen each went 2-for-2 to lead the Red Hawks, while Cruz (1-for-3) also found the hit column.
Kenzie Pahang pitched the full game for Ripon, giving up eight hits and four earned runs while striking out two and walking a pair.
NEXT UP: Ripon hosts Illinois College on Wednesday (April 10) for a doubleheader beginning at 1 p.m.
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