Judson (Ill.) 6, Carthage 2
Carthage 5, Judson (Ill.) 4
The Carthage College softball team (21-15, 10-4 College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin) closed out its regular-season schedule on Monday, May 2 by splitting a non-conference doubleheader with Judson University (Ill., 32-14) at the Judson Softball Complex in Elgin, Ill. The Lady Eagles won the opening game, 6-2, but the Lady Reds took the nightcap. 5-4.
Judson broke a 2-2 tie in the opening game when catcher Nicole Dimiceli launched a grand-slam home run in the bottom of the sixth inning. Carthage fell behind, 2-0, after four innings before scoring twice in the top of the sixth. Lady Eagles pitcher Samantha Gladen (13-4) was the beneficiary of the big inning. Gladen allowed two runs on four hits over seven innings, while walking three and striking out seven. Krystina Leazer (So., Des Plaines, Ill./Elk Grove, 17-7) took the loss. Leazer gave up all six runs, five earned, on 10 hits and two walks. Alyse Mikolas (Fr., Kenosha, Wis./Bradford) had two hits in four trips to the plate.
In the nightcap, Carthage took a 1-0 lead in the second inning on an RBI-single by Jen Precht. Judson came right back with two runs in the bottom half to take a 2-1 lead. The Lady Reds went back up, 3-2, in the third in a two-run double by Stephanie Schafer. Judson tied the game, 3-3, in the fifth, but Kari Peterson's two-run double in the sixth broke the tie, with the Lady Reds taking a 5-3 lead. The Lady Eagles got a run a back in the bottom of the sixth on an RBI-triple by Hallie Niewold, but Carthage hung on to win, 5-4.
Tricia O'Keefe (Sr., Franksville, Wis./Union Grove, 2-3) was the winning pitcher in the second game. O'Keefe allowed four runs on 10 hits over seven innings. Sarah Boyer (10-5) took the loss. Carthage's Jen Precht (So., Antioch, Ill.) had two hits, including a double.
Millikin University will play host to the CCIW Softball Tournament at the lighted Borg Warner Sports Complex in Decatur, Ill., on Thursday-Friday, May 5-6. The tournament, traditionally a Friday-Saturday event, was moved up one day to accommodate Wheaton College (Ill.), which cannot play on Sundays. Saturday, May 7 is a rain date for the tournament.
Carthage will be the second seed in the and will play third-seeded North Central College (23-11, 9-5) in the opening game on Thursday, May 5 at Noon. Millikin takes on fourth-seeded Wheaton College (Ill., 23-15-1, 7-7) in the other first-round game at 2 p.m. Play continues with games at 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. on Thursday. The tournament concludes with games at 10 a.m. and Noon on Friday. This is Carthage coach
Amy Gillmore's 12th trip to the conference tournament since taking over the program in 1998. Only the 2002 and 2006 teams failed to qualify for the tournament. North Central swept Millikin, 6-4 and 4-0, on Sunday to claim the third seed.
