RV Taylor Increases Win Streak against Bethel, Ends Road Trip with Series Sweep
Game 2
Game 2
Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | R | H | E |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Taylor | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 1 |
Bethel (IN) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
Game 1
Game 1
Final (6) | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | R | H | E |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Taylor | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 11 | 15 | 0 |
Bethel (IN) | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 1 |
MISHAWAKA, Ind. – RV Taylor (36-16, 22-12 CL) completed its eight-game road trip with two more resounding victories on Friday, defeating Bethel (15-40, 8-28 CL) 11-2 in five innings in game one before shutting out Pilots, 8-0, in the nightcap.
With the two victories, Taylor increased its winning streak over Bethel to 26 games, its longest winning streak over any Crossroads League opponent. The Trojans have not suffered a loss to the Pilots since April 25, 2014.
The Trojans put together another remarkable offensive performance, batting .435 (27-of-62) as a group with 19 runs scored, eight doubles, four home runs, and 16 runs batted in. Kara Tucker was brilliant at the plate for Taylor, finishing 5-for-6 with a double, four runs scored, and three RBI, while Emma West went 4-for-7 with a team-high five runs scored, two doubles, and four RBI.
Maddi Evans hit a pair of home runs in back-to-back innings in the opener and collected four hits on the day, while Aleyah Rastetter continued her red-hot second half of season, tying Kristin Mihalic for the team lead in round trippers while also driving in three runs in a four-hit performance.
The Trojans took control early in game one, scoring seven of their 11 runs in the first frame. Tucker got the scoring started with an RBI single, before Evans' first home run, a two-run shot, increased Taylor's lead to 3-0 before a single out was recorded. Ashton Whitman followed with an RBI single to center field, before West capped off the scoring with a three-run double to left-center.
Evans hit her second home of the contest in the second inning, increasing Taylor's lead to 8-0. Bethel responded with a pair of runs in the bottom of the frame, but the Trojans got a run back in the third on a Tucker RBI double.
Taylor added a pair of insurance runs in the fifth, as a Caitlyn Grim home run and an RBI double from Alexi Clay helped the Trojans secure the mercy-rule triumph.
Evans (17-4) struck out nine and allowed just four hits in her 12th complete-game performance of the 2021 campaign. The junior needs just one more victory to tie former Taylor standout Hannah Robbins, who recorded 18 wins in both 2014 and 2017 for the Trojans, for the most wins for a Trojan pitcher in a single season.
Rastetter continued to punish Bethel pitching in game two, hitting her eighth home run of the season in the first inning, giving the Trojans an early 2-0 lead in the process. Of her eight round-trippers in her freshman campaign, four have come against the Pilots.
RBI singles from Tucker and Rastetter in the third increased Taylor's advantage to 4-0, before the Trojans added four insurance runs in the top of the seventh to secure the series sweep.
Lauren Kanai (15-8) collected her 15th win of the season in game two, setting a new career-high for wins in a single campaign. The Grand Rapids, Michigan native gave up just three hits in her fifth complete-game outing, striking out five.
The Trojans will be back home at Gudakunst Field on Saturday afternoon for Senior Day, taking on Spring Arbor (21-29, 15-19 CL). First pitch is scheduled for 1:00 pm.