COLUMBUS, Ind. — The Boardman sisters — Hannah and Hailey — led the Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College softball team to a River States Conference doubleheader split at IU-Columbus on Tuesday afternoon (March 18). IU-Columbus came-from-behind to win the opener by the score of 10-9 but it was the Pomeroys rallying and holding on in the nightcap -- 4-3.
SMWC moved their overall record to 10-8 and remained level inside the RSC with a 5-5 ledger. IU-Columbus is now 6-12 and 4-4 in league play. The Pomeroys are back in action on Saturday (March 22) when they return home to face off against West Virginia Tech for a doubleheader beginning at 1 pm (ET) at the SMWC Softball Complex.
All told Hannah and Hailey went 6-of-11 at the plate on the day with six RBI and a key home run from Hannah in the second game to help pace the Pomeroys to victory.
GAME ONE:
Indiana University-Columbus took the first game of Tuesday's doubleheader, defeating St. Mary-of-the-Woods College 10-9 in a high-scoring battle at Ceraland.
The game saw both teams trade leads throughout, with IU-Columbus capitalizing on a strong second inning to take a commanding 7-3 lead. However, St. Mary-of-the-Woods fought back in the third and fifth innings, cutting the deficit and even briefly taking an 8-7 lead.
IU-Columbus responded in the bottom of the sixth, scoring three runs to reclaim the advantage for good. A fielder's choice and a pair of unearned runs brought them up 10-9, and despite a late rally from SMWC, the visitors could not push across the tying run.
Emily Chism (1-0) earned the win for IU-Columbus after a solid three-inning relief appearance. She gave up one run on four hits, striking out two and walking none. On the other side,
Alex Overman took the loss for SMWC, allowing three earned runs on four hits over five innings of work.
IU-Columbus wasted no time getting on the board in the first, with Mikayla Shelton's three-RBI double giving the hosts a 3-2 lead. The game remained close as SMWC responded with a run in the second and two more in the third, fueled by a pair of RBIs from
Jasmine Kinzer.
Kinzer's two-run homer in the fifth helped give the Pomeroys an 8-7 lead, but IU-Columbus' late rally proved to be the difference.
Shelton led IU-Columbus at the plate, going 2-for-4 with three RBIs.
Jaidyn Fuller and Kinzer each had multi-RBI performances for the Pomeroys, with Kinzer finishing the day 2-for-4 with a homer and two RBIs.
GAME TWO:
The Pomeroys bounced back in the second game of Tuesday's doubleheader, defeating Indiana University-Columbus 4-3 behind a stellar performance from pitcher
Lanna Martinez.
Martinez went the distance, allowing just three runs on six hits while striking out one and walking only one. She retired 14 batters via groundouts and kept the IU-Columbus offense in check over the final innings to preserve the win for SMWC.
The Pomeroys scored early, but it was a three-run fifth inning that turned the game in their favor.
Hannah Boardman's three-run home run gave SMWC a 4-2 lead, and the Pomeroys held on despite a late charge from IU-Columbus.
IU-Columbus took a 2-0 lead in the second inning, with Chloe Holser's two-run homer being the highlight. However, the Pomeroys answered in the third, with Boardman driving in
Kyar McVey to cut the lead to 2-1.
In the fifth, Boardman's three-run blast, her fourth of the season, put the visitors ahead, 4-2. The hosts tried to respond in the bottom of the frame with a run from Emily Chism's RBI single, but it wasn't enough to overtake SMWC.
Boardman finished the game 3-for-3 with a home run, four RBIs, and a walk. McVey added two hits and scored twice for SMWC.
