NOTRE DAME, Ind.-- The Trine softball team took game one at Saint Mary's Saturday afternoon, but game two was suspended before it could be concluded.
The Thunder used a 10-run sixth to fight back from a three-run deficit and take the first game 12-7. Game two was suspended due to weather and field conditions with Trine leading 3-1 entering the top of the fifth. The two teams will attempt to complete the game Sunday at 4 p.m. The Thunder improved to 26-10 overall and 13-2 in the MIAA. Saint Mary's fell to 19-15 overall, 9-6 in conference play.
Kaitlyn Clark (Mount Juliet, Tenn. / Wilson Central) and Kendra Marshall (Leesburg, Ind. / Warsaw) each homered to help lead the Thunder to the victory. Clark knocked in three runs, while Marshall collected two RBIs in the game. Lainey McCue (Westlake, Ohio / Westlake) knocked in a team-high four runs with a two-hit day.
Solo homers by Clark and Marshall were the only runs Trine was able to push across until the sixth. Clark's homer was the 37th of her Trine career, putting her within five round-trippers of tying the school record. Marshall extended her hitting-streak to 12 games with her sixth homer of the year. Marshall is batting a scalding .533 with four homers and 19 RBIs in her last 12 games.
A two-run third gave the Belles their first lead at 3-2. Saint Mary's extended its lead to 5-2 on a two-run homer by Kayla Champman in the bottom of the fifth.
That's when the Thunder bats erupted for 10 runs in the sixth. Trine sent 14 batters to the plate in the inning as they pounded out nine hits. McCue bookended the scoring in the inning with two two-run singles.
Catherine Porter (Canton, Mich. / Plymouth Canton), Erica Robles (Long Beach, Calif. / Lakewood), Clark, Marshall and Rachell Noble (Indianapolis, Ind. / Decatur Central) also knocked in runs in the inning.
Game two was suspended with Trine leading 3-1 after four innings. Porter, Robles and Alison Lang (Rome City, Ind. / East Noble) had collected RBIs for the Thunder.
Game two is expected to be completed tomorrow. If Trine closes out the victory, they will have clinched a share of a fifth-straight MIAA regular-season title.
The Thunder will be the No. 2 seed in the MIAA Tournament, which begins Thursday, May 5. Trine will face No. 3 seed Hope at Alma College, who will host this year's MIAA Tournament. Game time will be announced in the coming days.