The Beloit College softball team cruised to a pair of wins to open the 2021 season at Knox. The offense was on full display as the Buccaneers shutout the Prairie Fire 14-0 in five innings in game one followed by an 8-4 victory in the nightcap.
The Bucs scored 14 runs off 18 hits, including six doubles, in game one. Sophomore
Cora Aubert set the tone with a solo blast to leadoff the game and put Beloit up 1-0 but the Bucs weren't done yet. Freshman Bri Arteaga singled and advanced on an error followed by a hot shot up the middle off the bat of
Emily Stapay. The pitcher was able to knock the liner down and the second baseman registered the out but the bats were rolling. Junior
Kaitlynn Taft doubled and senior
Alyssa Morris walked to load the bases. Sophomore
Maddie Moser drove in two runs with a hard shot down the right field line that got by the outstretched glove of the right fielder for a double. Junior
Bre Noack's nifty soft slap drew a throw to first allowing Morris to score from third and give Beloit a 4-0 advantage after the first half inning.
The top of the second saw seven Bucs cross the plate on an eight-hit frame. Freshman
Isabel Johnson led off the inning with a double in the left center gap. Arteaga registered her second hit of the game and stole second. Stapay, a senior, drew a walk and Taft and Morris tagged back-to-back RBI singles to make it 6-0 Beloit. Moser tagged her second double in as many at bats to bring in two more with Noack and junior
Mackenzie Shawback's singles plating another pair. Aubert brought in the seventh run of the inning with a two-out RBI single to make it 11-0 after two innings.
Beloit added two more in the top of the fourth and a single run in the top of the fifth while the defense stymied the Prairie Fire for the five-inning shutout win.
Aubert, Arteaga, and Moser each tallied three hits to lead the Bucs' offensively. Johnson was 2-4 with two doubles in her first collegiate contest.
Junior hurler
Maddy Pfortmiller scattered four hits across five innings striking out five while issuing just one walk for the complete game win in the circle.
The bats stayed hot for game two. Aubert and Arteaga kicked off the game with consecutive singles. After an out, Taft followed suit with a single of her own to load the bases. Moser was dialed in tagging another double for two more RBI to give Beloit an early 2-0 lead.
Knox responded with a pair of runs in the bottom of the second and added a single run in the bottom of the third to take a 3-2 lead after three complete.
The Bucs reclaimed the lead with a two-out rally in the top of the fourth.
Amanda Langford walked followed by a Noack single. Aubert cleared the bases with her second four-bagger of the day to give Beloit a 5-3 lead.
Beloit plated three runs on three hits to give themselves a cushion in the top of the sixth with an 8-3 advantage.
Knox scored a single run with two outs in the bottom of the seventh but a groundout sealed the 8-4 victory for the Bucs.
Langford was a perfect 3-3 at the plate for Beloit. Aubert not only picked up the win in the circle in game two but continued to provide a spark offensively in the leadoff spot going 2-3 with two runs scored and three runs batted in on the three-run homer. Arteaga added another 3-4 performance to go 6-8 on the day.
Next Up: The Bucs will host Ripon College in a non-conference doubleheader Tuesday, March 30 beginning at 3 p.m. Note: As of March 28, spectators including students are not allowed at athletic events hosted by Beloit College.
