KALAMAZOO, Mich. -- Autumn Godwin's complete-game victory helped the Western Michigan softball team split a Saturday doubleheader with Akron at Ebert Field. The Zips captured game one, 3-2, before the Broncos rebounded for a 5-3 victory in the night cap.
WMU will look to split the series on Sunday, May 2, when the teams meet for the fourth time at Noon ET. The contest can be heard live on WMUBroncos.com.
| Game One
Akron held off a seventh-inning rally to take the opening game of the doubleheader, 3-2.
Mackenzie Swinehart and
Courtney Farrish each went 2-for-4 for the Broncos, while Farrish contributed an RBI.
Mackenzie Swinehart and
Alyssa Kramer scored for WMU.
Rissa Bajusz got the start and battled, going the distance and taking the loss while allowing just two earned runs. She struck out eight batters, throwing 144 pitches.
Olivia Stefanoni was the winning pitcher for Akron, limiting WMU to two earned runs and nine hits over seven innings with six strikeouts and just one walk. Tiffany Stevens and Alantis Taufa had RBI for the Zips in game one.
Akron struck first in the second when Taufa scored on a Bronco throwing error. The Zips added another single run in the fifth on an RBI single by Taufa, taking a 2-0 lead. The visitors added a big insurance run in the sixth when Stevens singled home Samantha Malik.Â
WMU finally broke through in the seventh, starting when
Mackenzie Swinehart's single was followed by an error in centerfield from Akron, allowing Kramer to score. Farrish added an RBI single to score
Mackenzie Swinehart, but
Sophia Ehlers struck out to end the rally and the game.
| Game Two
Godwin earned her second victory of the year by allowing seven hits and just two earned runs over seven innings. Mackenize Swinehart was 4-for-4 with a homer and two runs scored.
Kaylen Glenfield went 3-for-4 with a run and an RBI, while Farrish was 2-for-3 with an RBI.
Jordyn Swinehart added an RBI.
Akron used three pitchers, with Alexa DiFeo taking the loss after allowing six hits and two earned runs in three innings of work. Zip pitching struck out just one Bronco on the game. Jessie Holzman was 2-for-3. Stevens, Kalli MacIntosh-Houlder and Molly McChesney each had an RBI.
The Zips jumped out to a 2-0 lead thanks to an RBI double from Stevens and RBI triple from MacIntosh-Houlder in the first. WMU got one run back in the first on an RBI single from Farrish, then tied it in the second on an RBI single by
Jordyn Swinehart.
The score remained 2-2 until the fifth when
Mackenzie Swinehart hit the first pitch of the inning over the fence in right-center for her sixth home run of the season. A suicide squeeze from Bajusz scored Glenfield and made it 4-2 later in the inning.
Akron struck back when DeVoe scored on a wild pitch in the sixth, but the Glenfield delivered an RBI double in the bottom half of the inning to restore the 2-run lead. Godwin threw a perfect 1-2-3 seventh to seal the victory.
| On Deck
WMU and Akron meet for the fourth and final game of the series on Sunday, May 2. First pitch is set for Noon ET with an audio broadcast on WMUBroncos.com.
