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WINONA LAKE - The Grace College softball team held the conference championship in its hands Tuesday night. All the Lancers needed was six consecutive wins, two against 1-9 Huntington, two against 5-5 Marian and two last night against 5-3 Taylor. Taylor was the team coach Stephen Liebsch was worried about.
"Taylor has always been one that has hit us well," Liebsch said. "For the last few years, I've used about every pitcher I can find."
Sure enough, Taylor etched out an extra-inning victory in game one before the Lancers won game two. The loss gave Grace three conference losses, the same as Bethel. Because Bethel swept Grace earlier in the season, the Pilots hold the tiebreaker.
In game one, Grace struggled to get a clutch hit for the first four innings. However, in the bottom of the fifth, Tami Romagnoli doubled home two runs to tie the game at 3-3. Taylor battled back for four runs in the sixth and led 7-4 heading into the bottom of the seventh.
The Lancers scored twice to cut the lead to 7-6 with two outs and a runner on second. Rachel Liebsch ripped a single, scoring Sheila Horst to tie the game.
"As long as we keep our heads in the game, we can come back," Stephen Liebsch said. "It doesn't matter what the deficit is. And it was good to see the bats come around."
Neither team scored in the eighth, but Taylor came up with five runs on four hits and a walk in the ninth to win 12-7.
In game two, Liebsch settled down and held the Trojans to just one run. Grace scored three in the third as Kelli Irish, Christina Clark and Shannon Haskins all scored runs to give the Lancers a 3-1 win.
Liebsch pitched seven innings, allowing one unearned run to get the victory.
"I think the second game we finally figured out how to pitch them," Stephen Liebsch said. "That helped the fielding, too."
Liebsch has seen his team struggle with the fielding throughout much of the year, and it has cost the Lancers a few games, including two losses against Bethel.
"We still struggled some," Stephen Liebsch said. "At times, when we've made errors, we've let down. But they kept battling all night long."
Ironically, Grace went errorless in the first game but had three in the second game.
The Lancers (11-12, 7-3 MCC) will be at Marion Thursday and at Huntington Tuesday.
TAYLOR 12, GRACE 7
9 INNINGS
Taylor 012 004 005 - 12 13 2
Grace 100 021 300 - 7 15 0
LP - Liebsch (6-8)
Grace batters -ÊKelli Irish 2-5, 2 R; Christina Clark 2-4, R, RBI; Tami Romagnoli 4-4, 2B, R, RBI; Elicia Defreez 2-5, 2B, 3B, R, RBI
GRACE 3, TAYLOR 1
Taylor 000 010 0 - 1 3 1
Grace 003 000 x - 3 6 3
WP - Liebsch (7-8)
LP -ÊRukes
Grace batters - Kelli Irish 2-2, R; Christina Clark 2-3, 2B, R, RBI
