ANGOLA, IND. -- The Trine Universit softball team came away with a split against visiting Calvin College today as the team celebrated their senior class.
In game one, the Thunder struggled to figure out the pitching of the Knights' ace Anna Gernant, failing to record a baserunner until the sixth inning. Calvin, on the other hand, was able to come away with seven runs in the contest to pick up a 7-0 victory.
Senior Kaylee Fox (Vermilion, Ohio / Edison) came away with one of the teams two hits and also added a defensive highlight with an unassisted double play coming off of a Calvin line drive.
Game two saw the Thunder offense finally get rolling. Junior Lainey McCue (Westlake, Ohio / Westlake) started the scoring for Trine coming away with her first home run of the season, a three-run shot that gave the team a 3-0 lead heading into the bottom of the first inning. Sophomore Makenna Hartline (Niles, Mich. / Brandywine) added to the lead in the top of the third with a homer of her own giving the Thunder a 4-0 lead.
Calvin pulled themselves back into the game with two runs in each the third and fourth inning to tie the game at four heading into the fifth.
Trine responded with a three-run fifth inning to take back the lead 7-4. Fox started the scoring with her 15th home run of the season. Sophomore Michaela Hartline (Niles, Mich. / Brandywine) recorded an RBI double and freshman Bailey Vande Giessen (Kalamazoo, Mich. / Portage Central) added an RBI bunt to finish off the scoring for the Thunder.
Trine survived a scare in the bottom of the seventh where they allowed one run but stranded two more in scoring position to take home the 7-5 victory. Sophomore Hannah Kampmann (St. Paul, Minn. / Cretin Derham Hall) recorded the win after entering the game in relief. Junior Kate Saupe (Farwell, Mich. / Farwell) came away with her first save of the season in the contest.
Following the doubleheader, Trine said goodbye to their senior class. Fox highlights the group leaving Trine while owning at least a share of most power-hitting school records. She finishes her career with 60 home runs and 201 RBIs, both school records. Erica Robles (Long Beach, Calif. / Lakewood) finishes her career as one of the most consistent batters in team history, coming in second all-time with a .407 batting average. Emily White (Fortville, Ind. / Mount Vernon) walks away after a solid starting career for the Thunder, having been a fixture in right field for the past three seasons. She also leaves with the second best career stolen base percentage on record. Rene Finn (Clinton Township, Mich. / Chippewa Valley) rounds out the class and while she did not see much starting time as a member of the team, she made a valuable contribution as a baserunner and an as a student assistant.
The Thunder finish the regular season with a 25-11 overall record and an 8-8 record in the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA). The finish the regular season just outside of the MIAA Tournament with a fifth-place finish.