BLOOMINGTON, ILL.—The month of April has been busy for the Carthage College softball team. The Lady Red's doubleheader at Illinois Wesleyan on Saturday afternoon marks their 19^th and 20^th game in April, and they still have a week to go. Saturday afternoon was arguably the Lady Red's toughest test of the season as #11 Illinois Wesleyan awaited them in Bloomington, Illinois.
 
The Titans are coming off a split against UW-Whitewater on April 19 that includes a 2-1 loss, and a 2-0 victory. The Titans suffered two CCIW-losses this season, a 7-2 decision against Augustana College on April 6, and a 1-0 nail-bitter against Millikin University on April 13.
 
The Lady Reds couldn't add their name to that list as they fell to #11 Illinois Wesleyan by scores of 4-3 (8 innings) and 9-5.
 
Carthage falls to 16-16, 5-7 CCIW while Illinois Wesleyan improves to 26-6, 10-2 CCIW.
 
Titans 4, Lady Reds 3
 
Mary Rankin gave the Titans a 1-0 lead in the first inning when she doubled, and came around to score on a Danielle Smith single. Hailey Rothstein responded for the Lady Reds in the fourth inning with a solo-home run to tie the game 1-1.
 
Smith led off the fourth inning with a walk for the Titans. This put a runner on base for Julie Josten, who hit a two-run home run to push Illinois Wesleyan's lead to 3-1.
 
Makenzie Walker set the tone for the Lady Reds in the fifth inning when she was hit by a pitch. After she advanced to second base on a wild pitch, she scored on a Kristine Herdegen single to narrow the Titan lead to 3-2.
 
Walker did more damage to the Titans when she hit a solo-home run with two outs in the seventh inning to tie the game 3-3.
 
The Titans responded in the eighth inning when Jillian Runyon singled, and came around to score on Laura Bond's double to edge the Lady Reds 4-3.
 
Walker, Alessia Knowski, Herdegen and Rothstein each recorded one hit for Carthage. Walker scattered six hits in seven innings of work on the pitching rubber for the Lady Reds. Jenna Noland tallied 12 strikeouts in the pitching circle for the Titans.
 
Titans 9, Lady Reds 5
 
Katie Herron got the pitching start and finished the game with nine strikeouts in six innings of work. She kept things 0-0 until the Titans scratched and clawed their way to a run in the fourth inning. Josten reached first base after she struckout on a wild pitch that sailed to the backstop.
 
Sarah Platt reached base on an error to put runners on first and second base for Bonds, who drove in Josten on a single to give the Titans a 1-0 lead.
 
The Lady Reds took the lead in the fourth inning when Rothstein, Darian Pelsor and Sam McCloud loaded the bases. This set up Vivian Juarez's two-run single that scored McCloud and Walsh, Pelsor's pinch runner, to give Carthage a 2-1 lead.
 
That lead was short-lived as the Titans took a 6-2 lead thanks to a five-run fifth inning.
 
Lauren Jones and Herdegen each tallied home runs for the Lady Reds in the sixth and seventh inning, but it wasn't enough in a 9-5 loss to Illinois Wesleyan.
 
McCloud paced the Lady Red sluggers with a 3-for-4 day at the plate that included one double.
 
The Lady Reds will return to action on Monday, April 25 at the University of Chicago. The doubleheader will begin at 3:00 p.m.