Sunshine Spoiled by Lopsided Defeats Against No. 22 IWU

UPLAND, Ind. – On a picture-perfect day for softball with the sun shining and a cool breeze running through Gudakunst Field, the Trojans dropped a pair of games to cross-county rivals No. 22 Indiana Wesleyan (28-10, 17-7 CL).

A lopsided score in the second game did not do justice to the tight nature of the contest which was tied for three innings before IWU erupted for ten runs in the final three frames.

The Wildcats raced out to a 3-0 lead in the top of the first, with all three being unearned, before TU began a comeback.

Aleyah Rastetter launched her fourth home run of the season to left field, which tied her with Livie Lehmann and Delaynee McCreary as team leaders, to lead off the bottom of the inning and cut the deficit to two.

The bottom of the second saw Madisyn Standridge miss her first collegiate home run by mere inches, but she showcased her blazing speed for a standup triple that brought in a run. Standridge scored on a sac fly by Brooke Sanchez to tie things up at three.

Cassy Lewis threw three consecutive scoreless innings to keep the game knotted going into the top of the fifth.

IWU's offense then erupted for ten runs in the final three innings to race away with a 13-3 victory.

Taylor (16-20, 8-14 CL) fell behind early in game one and could not catch up as a 5-0 deficit after three innings proved insurmountable.

Standridge and McCreary both ripped doubles in the opener as the freshman combined to score two and drive two in.

The other TU highlight from the opener was made in left field, as Rastetter robbed a home run from former Trojan Ashton Whitman on a deep drive to left that elicited cheers from the TU faithful.

Taylor is scheduled to continue Crossroads League action next Tuesday, April 18, on the road against Grace (9-22, 8-18 CL), with first pitch scheduled for 3:00 pm.