Manchester U Softball Falls
ANGOLA, Ind. – After nearly being no-hit in the first game of Tuesday’s non-conference doubleheader at No. 22 Trine, the Manchester Spartans nearly pulled off a major upset in the second game of its twin bill against the Thunder.
Trine rallied to tie the game in the bottom of the 7th and completed its comeback with a run in extra innings to win by a final score of 8-7.
Trine clocked in at No. 22 in the most recent National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) Division III poll and entered play today with an overall record of 4-2. The Thunder had a win against nationally ranked Transylvania and its only two losses came against a top 10 DePauw squad. Manchester was seeking its first-ever win over a nationally ranked foe.
After being limited to only one hit in the first game, the Spartan offense scored 7 runs on 8 hits in Game 2.
The Black & Gold scored 4 runs in the top of the 3rd inning to grab an early lead over the Thunder. Kodi Douglass (Huntington, Ind./Huntington North) got the Spartans on the scoreboard with a run scoring single to left. Page Magner (North Vernon, Ind./Jennings County) singled home another run with a base hit up the middle. An error in the field by Trine allowed two more Spartans to score in the inning.
Trine battled right back with five runs of its own in the home half of the 3rd. Manchester’s offense continued to sizzle as the Spartans responded with a trio of runs in the top of the 4th to retake the lead.
Kodi Douglass doubled home a run to tie the game and then Kendal Torrence (Lowell, Ind./Lowell) followed with a 2-run double down the line in left to give the Spartans a 7-5 advantage.
The Thunder clawed back into Game 2 with a run in the home half of the 5th inning, and eventually tied the game with one out in the bottom of the seventh.
TU completed its comeback in the bottom of the 8th after a Spartan error in the field allowed the Thunder runner to score from second.
Kodi Douglass, Kendal Torrence, and Alexis Mokos (Cedar Lake, Ind./Hanover Central) all had two hits for Manchester.
Up Next:
- Manchester will host Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology at the MU Softball Field on Saturday, March 27, beginning at 1 p.m.
