VERMILLION, S.D.—South Dakota blasted six home runs Friday, but it was 25 hits from Western Illinois that scored the Leathernecks a doubleheader sweep at Nygaard Field. Western Illinois won by scores of 5-3 and 7-4.
It was the first Summit games for the Leathernecks (9-22, 2-0 Summit) who are picked to finish second behind favored North Dakota State. South Dakota (13-23, 3-2) entered having scored 33 runs in taking three games from Omaha last weekend, but mustered seven runs on 13 hits in its home debut.
Coyote catcher
Jessica Rogers was 3-for-6 during the twin bill with three home runs and four RBIs. In her last nine games, the junior is 12-for-27 with nine home runs and 22 RBIs. She leads the Summit with 11 home runs and 32 RBIs.
USD center fielder
Camille Fowler extended her hitting streak to nine games with a 2-for-3 effort in game one, but was 0-for-4 in game two. Fowler has had the longest streak by a Coyote this season.
Western Illinois 5, South Dakota 3
Rogers hit a two-run home run in her first at bat against reigning Summit Pitcher of the Year Emily Ira and got her again in the bottom of the sixth with a solo blast. But a five-run fourth inning by the visitors highlighted by a three-run double by Kelsey Marlow and a two-run home run by Hailey Duwa gave the Leathernecks the lead. Marlow and Duwa had two hits apiece.
Ira (4-7) gave up two home runs to Rogers, two singles to Fowler and a single to
Christy Warnock. She was dominant in between, striking out nine and only walking Fowler in South Dakota's first at bat of the game.
Western Illinois 7, South Dakota 4
South Dakota hit four solo home runs to take a 4-1 lead and chase Leatherneck starter Abby Carlin in the bottom of the third inning. But it forced Payton Abbott into the circle and brought in Sydney Hollings to play shortstop. Abbott blanked the Coyotes the rest of the way while Hollings, taking her first at bats of the season, went 3-for-3 with everything but a home run. She had two RBIs and scored two runs.
Taylor Steinfeldt and
Lauren Eamiguel homered in the bottom of the second for South Dakota, their seventh and second home runs of the season, respectively.
Alyssa Fernandez hit her sixth home of the season to make it 3-1 in the third and Rogers made it 4-1 two batters later.
Hollings' RBI triple cut the lead to 4-2 in the fourth and she scored on a base hit by Rachel Beatty to make it 4-3. Duwa's RBI double tied the game at 4-4 in the fifth, the Leathernecks scored on an error in the sixth and tacked on two insurance runs in the seventh.
Those were plenty for Abbott (1-2) who retired 13 of the 16 batters she faced and struck out six to get her first win of the season. The only extra-base hit she gave up was a two-out double to Eamiguel in the sixth.
Game three moved to 1 p.m. Saturday
The third and final game of the series has been pushed back two hours and will start at 1 p.m. Saturday at Nygaard Field.
