TUCSON, Ariz. (Mar. 13, 2024) – A group effort from up and down the batting order led to the Whittier College softball team hitting double digit runs against Eastern Connecticut State University to earn one final victory on its trip to the TIG (Tucson Invitational Games) Softball Invitational.
The Poets closed the road trip with four wins in five games, showing they could be a force to be reckoned with once SCIAC play ramps up later this month.
A collaborative hitting effort would be no exaggeration; multiple Whittier players had multiple hits, and out of the Poets' nine starters, five managed to pick up RBIs. Senior infielder
Heaven Wolf (Montebello, Calif. / Schurr) continued her remarkable start to the campaign by adding three more RBIs to her team-leading total of 16 -- this, in spite of hitting out of the nine-hole for the majority of the year. However, Whittier's discipline at the dish proved to be deciding factor in Wednesday's game.
Six different Poets drew walks to help set the table for players like Wolf and seniors
Emily Adkison (Laguna Niguel, Calif. / Mater Dei) and
Lindsey Perry (Corona, Calif. / Santiago). Both picked up two more RBIs themselves, and combined with Wolf as to make up the most productive part of the Poets' lineup as the 9-1-2. Adkison hit in all five Arizona games, and continues to be one of the toughest players in the country to strike out.
After Eastern Connecticut got on the board with a first-inning sacrifice fly, the Poets proceeded to put up 10 unanswered runs, the majority of which came in the fourth inning. Whittier had six runs over this stretch, with a double from senior third baseman
Marissa Flynn serving as the fire starter. Flynn would then score on a single from freshman outfielder
Daniella Contreras (Buena Park, Calif. / John F. Kennedy) before a triple from Wolf would clear the bases. The three bagger also helped raise her slugging percentage to .639%, up nearly double from last year.
On the mound, starting pitcher
Kiley Kraft (Alhambra, Calif. / Ramona Convent Secondary School) held down the fort with her strong control. She walked just one batter over her four innings of action, and positioned herself for the win before giving way to fellow junior transfer
Daryanna Ductoc (Alhambra, Calif. / Ramona Convent Secondary School), who pitched a clean fifth inning to seal the deal for the Purple & Gold.
Head Coach
Trisha Senyo and the Poets will look to stay hot when they host Williams College on Monday, Mar. 19 for a doubleheader set to get underway at 1 p.m.
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