The latest installment of "As the GLIAC Turns," features a plot with more twists than month-old taffy. In this instance, the sport is softball and double crosses and friends turning on friends occurs with each new game.
Friday (Apr. 25) at Ohio Dominican, the Eagles split a doubleheader with the Panthers. Ashland won the first game, 7-5 in eight innings. The second game saw ODU take an early lead and cruise to an 8-2 victory.
AU is in seventh place in the GLIAC. The Eagles are 23-16 overall and 12-10 in the conference. Findlay is in eighth place in the league with a 12-11 mark. Hillsdale is ninth at 11-13. Tiffin and Ferris State, the two other teams AU plays this week, are lurking in the shadows.
The top eight teams in the standings head to the league tournament. This is the final weekend of regular season play. As for the ODU, the Panthers are in. They are 23-25 overall, but have a 19-5 GLIAC record.
In Friday's first game, the Eagles bolted to a 5-0 lead after three innings. The Panthers put up four runs in the bottom of the fifth inning and the teams were tied, 5-5 after seven frames.
In the top of the eighth a two-out single by Ally Farrah scored shortstop Jamie Weber, who had reached base with a bunt single. Farrah scurried home on a double to right-center field by Sarah Alley.
In the bottom of the eighth, Alley retired the Panthers without incident to earn the win. She pitched 2.2 scoreless innings, allowing one hit. She was the third pitcher the Eagles employed in the game.
AU banged out 15 hits, but left nine runners on base. Kayla Prokopakis and Jen Moore homered and Moore drove in two runs. She was 2-for-4. Shelbie Prince and Bri Buckley also went 2-for-4 and Buckley tripled. Weber and center fielder Taylor Menhart were 2-for-3.
Alley ran into immediate trouble in the second game. Six of the first seven ODU players to come to the plate singled and when the first inning was over, the Panthers had six runs on seven hits. Ashland got two runs back in the first inning on a two-run double by Moore, but couldn't score again.
The Panthers had 16 hits in the second game. Alley pitched an inning and took the loss. She's 9-8. McKenna Galloway went the rest of the game in the circle.
Ashland will play at Tiffin on Saturday (Apr. 26, 1 p.m.).
AU
SOFT/ALK