CLEVELAND, Ohio — Less than 24 hours after getting blanked in a doubleheader sweep by Transylvania, the Wittenberg Tigers showed some resiliency, winning two of the more unusual games possible by scores of 4-0 and 22-14 over host Case Western Reserve.
The wins moved the Tigers to 8-12 overall on the 2010 season and hopefully created some much-needed momentum heading into Tuesday's North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) opener at home against Ohio Wesleyan. Case Western dropped to 7-19.
In the opener, the big story was pitching, but not necessarily for the obvious shutout reason. Senior Brooke Boswell (Hamilton, Ohio/Fairfield) posted a most unusual shutout, allowing 15 Case Western hitters to reach base but stranding every single one of them. Boswell scattered seven hits, walked two batters, hit four batters and was forced to overcome two Wittenberg errors. Amazingly, in the last four innings, Case Western left 10 runners on base, including the bases loaded in the fifth and sixth innings.
Offensively, the Tigers banged out 11 hits by nine different players. Boswell helped her cause with two base hits and a run scored, while sophomore Brooklyn Cox (Dayton, Ohio/Vandalia Butler) added a hit, run and RBI to the effort.
The nightcap was one of the wildest games in Tiger softball history as the two teams combined for 36 runs on 42 hits. The Tigers scored in all seven innings, while Case Western scored runs in four of the first five innings before senior Meghan O'Neill (Springfield, Ohio/Catholic Central) came in to restore order, earning the save while pitching 2.2 innings of scoreless relief.
Two statistical oddities of note in this one - Case Western used just one pitcher in the game, and she was charged with 23 hits, 22 runs (18 earned) and 10 walks. The two teams combined for 42 hits and 13 walks, but they stranded just 20 runners. In the first game, four runs scored while a whopping 28 runners were left on base.
The 22 runs were the most ever by a Wittenberg team, exceeding the 21 scored against Oberlin in April 2008. The combined total for the two teams is believed to be a Wittenberg record as well.
Individually, the Tiger offense was paced by senior Amanda Delagrange (Akron, Ohio/Firestone), who finished 5-of-6 with four runs and four RBI. Boswell added four hits, three runs and three RBI, while sophomore Jessica Snyder (Northfield, Ill./New Trier) contributed four hits, three runs and two RBI from the lead-off spot. Cox and junior Jessi Allen (Naperville, Ill./Neuqua Valley) also finished with three hits apiece, while senior Haley Gerken (Logan, Ohio/Logan) finished with a career-high four runs batted in.