CLERMONT, Fla. - On day three of Spring Break for the Adrian softball team, the black and gold (3-3) finished strong against Houghton College after a narrow defeat at the hands of Eastern University.
 
Game 1: Adrian 6, Eastern 7

Against the Eagles, the Bulldogs nearly pulled off a dramatic comeback victory, but fell just one run short of forcing extra innings.

Eastern went to work quickly on Adrian starter Natalie Mathers, posting four runs over the first two frames before adding a three-piece in the bottom leg of the fourth to build its advantage to 7-0.

Then, in the top of the fifth inning, the locals went off for three runs of their own. A Keira Stampfly RBI-double to left-centerfield brought around pinch-runner Flesia Borck to put the 'Dogs on the board. Later in the frame, with Stampfly still perched on the bags, Maggie Leveille rose to the plate to bring her teammate home with an infield-single. The following at-bat, Hailey DeChalk popped a sacrifice fly to the right side, plating Leveille to pull Adrian within four runs.

In the subsequent inning, Katie Connolly led things off with a double up the middle, eventually being sent back to home off the bat of Calle Perrin. Then, with Makenzi Johnson replacing Perrin on the basepaths, Savannah Godfrey drove a single through the right side to score the freshman, trimming the deficit down to two.

Adrian's last gasp came in the top half of the seventh inning, when Lauren McCulligh launched her second home run in as many days to cut the Eagles' lead to only 7-6. Nevertheless, Eastern came up with a defensive stop to follow, ultimately ending the contest.

Eight different Bulldogs tallied hits in the first game of the day, while six different hitters contributed RBIs.
 
Game 2: Adrian 10, Houghton 5

Adrian bounced back in a big way against the Highlanders, notching its best offensive performance to-date.

After Houghton produced the game's first run in the first inning, the 'Dogs answered right back with four runs in the following half-inning.

The highlight of the inning was a lead-off triple by Connolly, setting Adrian up in prime scoring position. The senior would eventually score, as would Ava Ferrarelli, Madison Cvengros and Stampfly.

The newly made 4-1 lead did not last for long, however, as the Highlanders struck for a four-piece in the next half-inning, restoring their one-run cushion.

From that point on, it was all black and gold, as six unanswered runs by the victors propelled them to their third victory of the young season.

Mathers got some redemption in the circle in game two, firing 4.2 innings of relief work and allowing zero runs on four hits while also retiring five batters on strikes.

The Bulldogs are set to return to action in Florida on Thursday, facing off against Wartburg College and Moravian University.
 
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