The Beloit College softball team lost a heartbreaker, 9-inning and over three-hour long game to Wheaton (Mass.) 9-8 followed by a 16-1 shortened game loss to Washington College in their first contests of the Sunkissed Games in Kissimmee, Florida Sunday.
The Buccaneers' bats were on fire to open play Sunday. After a scoreless first, the Bucs put up six runs in the bottom of the second. Dani Strejc got things going for Beloit in the inning with a leadoff single up the middle. Strejc moved to second on a passed ball and Josie Guernsey followed with a walk. Emily Stapay singled down the left field line to score Strejc and put runners on the corners. With one out and runners on first and second, Madi Christine singled through the right side to tally a RBI. The final four runs of the inning came with two outs. A passed ball put two runners in scoring position, both touched home on Ashley Lambert's double to right field. Alyssa Morris followed suit with a single up the middle and Emily Malarski made it three consecutive hits with a triple to left center that plated two more giving the Bucs a 6-0 lead after two innings.
The Lyons countered with two runs in the top half of the third but Beloit continued their offensive streak in their side of the inning. With two outs, Kaity Grzeszkiewicz tagged a shot that sailed over the left field wall to make it 7-3 Beloit.
The Lyons fought their way back into the game with three runs in the fifth, one in the sixth and another in the top of the seventh to force extra innings.
Capitalizing on the international tie breaker implemented in extra innings in these games, where the last batter for a team starts the inning on second base, the teams traded runs in the eighth inning in typical fashion, using small ball.
Wheaton plated another run in the top of the ninth again taking advantage of the international tie breaker but advancing the runner on second with a bunt followed by a groundball.
The Bucs threatened in their half of the inning but were unable to score the tying run.
Beloit tallied 12 hits in the game with multiple hits off the bats of Christine, Bree Swanson and Alyssa Boltik.
Boltik went the distance in the circle allowing just one earned run in nine innings on the mound.
The Buccaneers scored in the top of the first in game two for the day after Boltik scored from first base on a single to right center by Lambert but the Shorewomen of Washington College had their offense rolling en route to the five-inning win.
Beloit will face Skidmore and Haverford tomorrow at 3:45 and 6 p.m. respectively before taking a day to recoup Tuesday.
