IRVING, Texas – After inclement weather in Texas prevented the Simpson College softball team from opening its season as originally planned on Saturday, the Storm played a triple-header on Sunday with one game against Austin and two against Dallas. Simpson won the opener 14-2 in six innings and split a pair of three-run games with Dallas, falling 6-3 before rebounding with an 8-5 triumph to close the weekend.
Between the three games, the Storm (2-1) batted .341 with 25 runs on 31 hits. Maddie Luderman exploded for seven hits with two home runs and nine RBI to lead the team, while Taryan Barrick-Wessels and Randie Richmond combined for nine hits highlighted by two doubles. Karlie Hill drove in four runs with three hits, and Megan Crockett accounted for three of Simpson's 11 extra-base hits.
Simpson 14, Austin 2 (six innings)
After a pair of scoreless innings to start the game, Simpson's bats erupted for 14 runs on 12 hits over the next four innings. The Storm capitalized on three Austin errors for a trio of runs in the third and pushed their lead out to five in the fourth following an RBI triple from Olivia Allen and sacrifice fly from Crockett.
In the fifth, Hill singled to center before Luderman hit her first home run of the season to tally two more runs. Simpson then doubled its advantage with seven runs on six hits and three errors in the sixth frame. Hill and Molly Platte both drove in multiple runs, while Barrick-Wessels and Liv Erickson each had RBI singles. The Kangaroos (2-7) got a pair of unearned runs in the bottom half to prevent the shutout.
Six batters tallied multiple hits during the game and the duo of Luderman and Platte finished with three RBI each.
Barrick-Wessels (1-0) went the distance in the circle for her first victory of the year. She struck out seven batters while giving up just four hits.
Dallas 6, Simpson 3
The Storm were the first to scratch the scoreboard again in game two as Luderman singled through the left side to score Mya Willey who had a leadoff single to start the third. Dallas (1-9) responded with four runs in the bottom half and added another in the fifth to lead 5-1.
Simpson trimmed the deficit to three in the sixth and had the bases loaded with just one out, but Dallas ended the threat with a pair of fly-outs.The Crusaders tallied an insurance run in the home half, and the Storm were only able to manage one score in the final inning.
Brooke Tucker (0-1) suffered the loss in the circle allowing four runs on nine hits over 2.2 innings of work. Richmond tossed the remaining 3.1 innings and allowed two runs, one earned, on three hits.
Simpson 8, Dallas 5
The Storm wasted no time scoring in the third and final game of the day as Erickson reached on an error and was brought home by a Crockett triple. After Barrick-Wessels drew a walk and stole second, Luderman smashed a three-run homer to put Simpson ahead 4-0.
The two squads traded a run in the second frame and Dallas cut Simpson's lead to two in the third. Another RBI from Luderman and a two-run double from Hill helped the Storm regain some cushion at the halfway point of the contest. The Crusaders scored two in the bottom of the seventh, but back-to-back fielder's choices ended the rally.
Richmond (1-0) was credited with the win after tossing 2.2 innings. She allowed three runs, one earned, on five hits and had one strikeout. Barrick-Wessels and Mackenzie DePhillips also saw time in the circle.
Up Next
The Storm have some time off before making the trip to Florida for 14 contests between March 12-19 at The Spring Games.
