[Softball] Early's walk-off rescues Mustangs in split with Waldorf

MARION, Iowa -- Junior right fielder Mariah Early hit a two-run, walk-off homer in the bottom of the eighth inning to give Mount Mercy a 10-9 win over Waldorf in the opening game of Tuesday's Midwest Collegiate Conference doubleheader at Marion High School. The Warriors rebounded to win the nightcap, 8-5.

Waldorf took a 9-8 lead in the top of the eighth inning on an RBI single by Kirstin Davis. The Warriors left three runners stranded, and it cost them. Junior designated player Briana DeFlavio walked to lead off the bottom of the eighth, and Early followed with her second home run of the game to clinch the victory.

The Mustangs finished with 15 hits, three by freshman center fielder Erica Soppe and two each by Early, DeFlavio, junior first baseman Liz Hill, senior third baseman Jessica Magnuson, junior second baseman Rosie Jones and junior left fielder Christina Husmann. Early ended up 2-for-4 with a pair of homers and five runs batted in. Magnuson and Jones drove in two runs apiece.

Junior right-hander Paige Lager earned an unusual win. She started the game and went 2 2/3 innings before giving way to freshman righty Kayley Hakeman. Hakeman pitched 5 1/3 innings of six-hit ball, then Lager returned for the final out of the eighth inning to pick up the victory.

Game two went Waldorf's way from the start. The Warriors touched up Early for six runs on four hits in 1 2/3 innings. Only three runs were earned, thanks to three Mustang errors in the first inning. Mount Mercy fought back in the bottom of the fifth, getting a run-scoring single by Magnuson and a three-run blast from DeFlavio that got the Mustangs within 6-4.

The Warriors (14-14, 6-6 MCC) added a pair of insurance runs in the top of the seventh, then held off the Mustangs (12-14, 5-5 MCC) in the bottom half to earn the split with an 8-5 win. Lager, who pitched well in relief of Early, was also 2-for-4 at the plate. She went 5 1/3 innings on the mound, allowing one earned run on eight hits while striking out six.

Mount Mercy competes at the Sammons Classic this weekend at Iowa Wesleyan in Mount Pleasant. On Friday, the Mustangs face Robert Morris (Ill.) at 11:00 a.m. and St. Francis (Ill.) at 2:30 p.m. Then on Saturday, they take on Trinity Christian (Ill.) at 9:00 a.m., Judson (Ill.) at 2:15 p.m. and Olivet Nazarene (Ill.) at 4:00 p.m.