MARQUETTE, Mich. - Lake Superior Softball picked up 19 runs on 20 hits to roll to victory over Edgewood College on the final day of the Finlandia Dome Tournament. The Lakers finished the weekend 3-1 overall inside the Superior Dome for their first action of the season.
Freshman pitcher Alyssa Thayer (1-1) responded nicely after running into trouble in the Lakers' final game on Saturday against Concordia. Against the Eagles on Sunday, Thayer produced a five-inning complete game allowing two runs and striking out five batters.
It took a scoreless inning for both sides before the Lakers offense found it's spark. LSSU scored eight runs in the second inning and eight more runs in the third inning to find themselves ahead 16-0 after three innings of play.
Following a pair of walks by Katie Martin and Kelsey Mader to open the second inning, Taylor Steinhelper put the Lakers on the board first with a single to right field to score Martin.
After a walk to the next batter, Lindsey Pajot, junior Carly Banchiu belted a grand-slam home run to put the Lakers up 5-0. The grand slam would be the first of two homers and six runs batted in by Banchiu on the day.
Next up, Kylie Durre and Katey Hendershott, who both had big games offensively during the two Laker victories on Saturday, hit a double and single respectively and put runners on the corners for Teryn Williams. Williams grounded out to the pitcher but scored Durre in the process. Martin, the next batter and at the plate for the second time in the second inning, then scored Hendershott with an RBI single.
After Martin put the Lakers up 7-0, the Falcons decided to take Rachel DeJongh off the mound after just 1.2 innings pitched. DeJongh was roughed up for eight runs on eight hits and allowed the grand slam by Banchiu.
Shannon Whitmus then replaced DeJongh with the Lakers still threatening. Following Mader's second walk of the inning, Emily Estep singled to left field to score Martin and deliver the eighth run of the inning.
After a three up and three down bottom of the second for the Eagles, the Lakers blasted off for their second consecutive eight run half inning.
Hendershott got the scoring started in the third inning with a double to right field to plate Banchiu and Durre. After a wild pitch advanced Hendershott to third, Williams drove in her second-consecutive RBI with a single up the middle.
Three batters later, Steinhelper doubled for her second and third RBIs of the morning with a shot to left field. The double by Steinhelper, her first of the season put runners on second and third for Pajot.
Pajot, a sophomore, then stepped up and delivered her first career home run to score Steinhelper and Estep.
After a single by Banchiu, and a pop-up by Durre, the Eagless finally stopped the damage in the third with a score of 16-0.
In the top of the fifth inning Banchiu hit her second home run of game. The two-run shot scored Steinhelper and delivered Banchiu's sixth RBI of the game. Durre followed up Banchiu's home run with a ground-rule double and later scored the Lakers' 19th run of the ballgame on an error.
Edgewood added two runs on three hits and two errors in the bottom of the fifth but Thayer slammed the door with a strikeout against the last batter to close the door.
Steinhelper finished with three runs and three RBIs from the leadoff spot, and Pajot added three RBIs and scored two runs from the second spot in the lineup. Steinhelper also added two stolen bases to lead the team.
Durre was 3-for-4 and scored three runs from the cleanup spot and Hendershott backed Durre up with a 3-for-4, 2 RBI performance from the five slot.
Next week the Lakers start an eight-day trip to the Spring Games in Clermont, Fla. The Lakers will play 12 games during the eight days, beginning with two games on Wednesday, March 2.