Lancer Softball Drops Home Finale
April 26, 2023 at 11:57 p.m.
Lancer Softball Drops Home Finale
By Grant Cook-
Grace (11-28, 10-24 Crossroads League) battled hard in game one, dropping the hard fought contest 4-2, before falling 13-3 in the final game of the double header.
The Lancers took an early lead in game one. Taylor Hodgen hit a leadoff triple and came in to score two batters later. Cassie Hayes hit a soft grounder towards the pitcher, and Hodgen raced home and slid safely under the tag of the Cougars’ (18-24, 12-20 CL) catcher to put Grace ahead 1-0.
USF answered back in the next half inning with a two-out triple that scored a runner from first base to bring the game even at one apiece.
The Cougars nabbed their first lead of the game in the fourth inning with a solo home run to edge ahead of Grace 2-1.
In the fifth inning Bree Gardinier matched USF’s longball with one of her own. Gardinier went to the opposite side of the field with her home run, blasting the ball over the right field fence to tie the game at 2-2.
The Cougars used some two-out magic in the sixthing inning to reclaim the lead for good. USF plated two runs in the sixth inning to capture the 4-2 lead.
The Lancers were unable to find the needed offense late, and dropped the opener 4-2.
Hodgen reached bases on all three trips to the plate and Cassie Hayes had a two hit game.
In game two Hodgen continued her perfect day at the plate, as she started Grace off with a leadoff walk. Jeri Ellis also reached base with a single.
Hayes got her second RBI of the game with a double that scored Hodgen and Ellis crossed the plate after a sacrifice fly from Tia O’Connor that gave the Lancers a 2-0 lead after the first inning.
Both teams scattered hits across the middle innings until USF’s offense came alive in the fifth inning. The Cougars had five players reach base safely in the inning as they leapfrogged the Lancers for a 3-2 lead.
Hodgen reached base via a walk for the third time in game two as the Lancers looked to draw even in the bottom of the fifth.
Grace would tie the game at 3-3 when O’Connor’s sacrifice fly served its purpose as Hodgen reached home safely to draw the game even.
The Cougars responded with two runs in the sixth and eight more runs in the seventh to take a commanding 13-3 lead. Grace went down in order to close out the seventh as the Lancers dropped game two 13-3.
Hodgen reached six times in the afternoon. Her line was two hits, three walks and one hit by pitch. Hayes also shined offensively with four hits in five recorded at bats.
The Lancers will return to action on Thursday as they close out the regular season against Mt. Vernon.
Women’s Golf Dominates Enroute To Seventh Tourney Win
FORT WAYNE - Grace College’s women’s golf team dominated the competition at the Cougars’ Spring Invite on Tuesday afternoon.
Despite battling adverse weather conditions both days of the tournament, the Lady Lancers had four members on the All-Tournament team, and placed six players within the top 10.
Grace’s team score of 638 was 20 strokes better than the next closest competition.
Summer Stillson once again led the way for the Lady Lancers, taking overall medalist honors with a score of 155.
This tournament win was Stillson’s fourth of the season, which ties her own record from last season for wins in a single season. She already owns the record for career tournament victories.
Just two strokes off the lead score, was Hannah Godfrey who played her two best rounds of the season. Godfrey’s score of 157 not only paced Grace’s “B” squad, but was the second best mark in the tournament.
Helping Grace sweep the podium was Grace May. May had a two day mark of 159 to clinch a third place finish.
The final Lady Lancer in the top five was Brette Hanavan who turned in identical marks on both days to finish with a total of 160.
Carolyn Pachocha and Lucy Young rounded out the top 10 as they tied for ninth place with twin marks of 165.
Sydney Cesare grabbed a top 15 spot with a two round score of 176. Brittney Klotz improved on day one score to finish at 184.
Raigan King had her best round of collegiate golf on Tuesday. The freshman took 11-strokes off of her day one score to card a 98 on day, bringing her total to 207.
“This was a great showing from these ladies despite the weather,” said Grace head coach Denny Duncan. “Obviously Summer played great again today to win the tournament, but I'm really proud of the two rounds that Hannah played in this tournament.”
Grace’s “B” squad will close out the season at the Trine Invite on Saturday, before the Lady Lancers turn their attention to the Crossroads League Tournament which will be hosted on May 8th and 9th.
Men’s Golf Wins Second Straight Tourney
FORT WAYNE - Grace’s men’s golf team collected its second consecutive tournament win on Tuesday.
The Lancers won the Battle at Brookwood, a two-day, two-round event held on Monday and Tuesday.
Grace used an impressive second-round performance on Tuesday to win the four-team tournament. Grace sat in last place after the first round but was just six strokes off the overall lead.
The Lancers then dominated play on Tuesday, carding a team score of 295 which was nine strokes better than the closest competitor. Grace (596) won the tourney by seven strokes over Crossroads League foe Mt. Vernon Nazarene.
Blake Lawson led Grace’s charge up the leaderboard. After carding a first-round 77, Lawson roared to life with a round of 69 on Tuesday; it was the lowest round of any player throughout the tournament. Lawson finished as the runner-up.
Isaac Embry ended in sixth place in the field. He had one of Grace’s steadiest hands with a scorecard of 73-75.
Parker Wilburn was next in line for the Lancers (73-79), and Chase Byron improved his total by 11 strokes between rounds to finish with a score of 155.
Payton Kelly (78-79) rounded out Grace’s scoring, and Tristen Dubbs and Gavin Tidd also competed as individuals.
The Lancers will conclude their season with the 2023 Crossroads League Championships. The two-day tournament begins May 1 at Chariot Run Golf Course.
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Grace (11-28, 10-24 Crossroads League) battled hard in game one, dropping the hard fought contest 4-2, before falling 13-3 in the final game of the double header.
The Lancers took an early lead in game one. Taylor Hodgen hit a leadoff triple and came in to score two batters later. Cassie Hayes hit a soft grounder towards the pitcher, and Hodgen raced home and slid safely under the tag of the Cougars’ (18-24, 12-20 CL) catcher to put Grace ahead 1-0.
USF answered back in the next half inning with a two-out triple that scored a runner from first base to bring the game even at one apiece.
The Cougars nabbed their first lead of the game in the fourth inning with a solo home run to edge ahead of Grace 2-1.
In the fifth inning Bree Gardinier matched USF’s longball with one of her own. Gardinier went to the opposite side of the field with her home run, blasting the ball over the right field fence to tie the game at 2-2.
The Cougars used some two-out magic in the sixthing inning to reclaim the lead for good. USF plated two runs in the sixth inning to capture the 4-2 lead.
The Lancers were unable to find the needed offense late, and dropped the opener 4-2.
Hodgen reached bases on all three trips to the plate and Cassie Hayes had a two hit game.
In game two Hodgen continued her perfect day at the plate, as she started Grace off with a leadoff walk. Jeri Ellis also reached base with a single.
Hayes got her second RBI of the game with a double that scored Hodgen and Ellis crossed the plate after a sacrifice fly from Tia O’Connor that gave the Lancers a 2-0 lead after the first inning.
Both teams scattered hits across the middle innings until USF’s offense came alive in the fifth inning. The Cougars had five players reach base safely in the inning as they leapfrogged the Lancers for a 3-2 lead.
Hodgen reached base via a walk for the third time in game two as the Lancers looked to draw even in the bottom of the fifth.
Grace would tie the game at 3-3 when O’Connor’s sacrifice fly served its purpose as Hodgen reached home safely to draw the game even.
The Cougars responded with two runs in the sixth and eight more runs in the seventh to take a commanding 13-3 lead. Grace went down in order to close out the seventh as the Lancers dropped game two 13-3.
Hodgen reached six times in the afternoon. Her line was two hits, three walks and one hit by pitch. Hayes also shined offensively with four hits in five recorded at bats.
The Lancers will return to action on Thursday as they close out the regular season against Mt. Vernon.
Women’s Golf Dominates Enroute To Seventh Tourney Win
FORT WAYNE - Grace College’s women’s golf team dominated the competition at the Cougars’ Spring Invite on Tuesday afternoon.
Despite battling adverse weather conditions both days of the tournament, the Lady Lancers had four members on the All-Tournament team, and placed six players within the top 10.
Grace’s team score of 638 was 20 strokes better than the next closest competition.
Summer Stillson once again led the way for the Lady Lancers, taking overall medalist honors with a score of 155.
This tournament win was Stillson’s fourth of the season, which ties her own record from last season for wins in a single season. She already owns the record for career tournament victories.
Just two strokes off the lead score, was Hannah Godfrey who played her two best rounds of the season. Godfrey’s score of 157 not only paced Grace’s “B” squad, but was the second best mark in the tournament.
Helping Grace sweep the podium was Grace May. May had a two day mark of 159 to clinch a third place finish.
The final Lady Lancer in the top five was Brette Hanavan who turned in identical marks on both days to finish with a total of 160.
Carolyn Pachocha and Lucy Young rounded out the top 10 as they tied for ninth place with twin marks of 165.
Sydney Cesare grabbed a top 15 spot with a two round score of 176. Brittney Klotz improved on day one score to finish at 184.
Raigan King had her best round of collegiate golf on Tuesday. The freshman took 11-strokes off of her day one score to card a 98 on day, bringing her total to 207.
“This was a great showing from these ladies despite the weather,” said Grace head coach Denny Duncan. “Obviously Summer played great again today to win the tournament, but I'm really proud of the two rounds that Hannah played in this tournament.”
Grace’s “B” squad will close out the season at the Trine Invite on Saturday, before the Lady Lancers turn their attention to the Crossroads League Tournament which will be hosted on May 8th and 9th.
Men’s Golf Wins Second Straight Tourney
FORT WAYNE - Grace’s men’s golf team collected its second consecutive tournament win on Tuesday.
The Lancers won the Battle at Brookwood, a two-day, two-round event held on Monday and Tuesday.
Grace used an impressive second-round performance on Tuesday to win the four-team tournament. Grace sat in last place after the first round but was just six strokes off the overall lead.
The Lancers then dominated play on Tuesday, carding a team score of 295 which was nine strokes better than the closest competitor. Grace (596) won the tourney by seven strokes over Crossroads League foe Mt. Vernon Nazarene.
Blake Lawson led Grace’s charge up the leaderboard. After carding a first-round 77, Lawson roared to life with a round of 69 on Tuesday; it was the lowest round of any player throughout the tournament. Lawson finished as the runner-up.
Isaac Embry ended in sixth place in the field. He had one of Grace’s steadiest hands with a scorecard of 73-75.
Parker Wilburn was next in line for the Lancers (73-79), and Chase Byron improved his total by 11 strokes between rounds to finish with a score of 155.
Payton Kelly (78-79) rounded out Grace’s scoring, and Tristen Dubbs and Gavin Tidd also competed as individuals.
The Lancers will conclude their season with the 2023 Crossroads League Championships. The two-day tournament begins May 1 at Chariot Run Golf Course.
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