Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 The Dordt University softball team lost a pair of games played today on its second day of its Spring Break trip in Florida. The Defenders lost to Mount Vernon Nazarene (Ohio) in the final at-bat 9-8 and followed with a 9-2 setback against Spring Arbor (Mich.). 

Dordt is now 8-11 this season and will play two games on Thursday, March 6 against Judson (Ill.) and Spring Arbor; game times are set for 9:30am (CST) and 1:30pm (CST). 

Game One: 9-8 loss vs Mount Vernon Nazarene | Box Score

Down 7-6 going into the top of the sixth inning, Dordt pushed two runs across on back-to-back, two-out RBI singles by Taylor Schneider and Addison Stephenson-Roy to take an 8-7 lead. 

Mount Vernon Nazarene went scoreless in the bottom of the sixth and the Defenders were retired in order in the top of the seventh. The Cougars, however, came up with the tying and winning runs in their final at-bat, taking advantage of a Dordt error followed by run-scoring doubles by Sydney Hoover and Jesenia Montalvo.

Chloe Kreuz dropped her record to 4-6 as the sophomore allowed 10 hits, nine runs in 6.2 innings. She walked three and struck out five in a 135-pitch effort. 

The teams traded the lead five times and combined for 21 hits, 17 runs and seven errors. Dordt opened the game's scoring with a run in the top of the first when Brooklynn Cox walked, stole second and came around to score on a double by Kreuz.

Mount Vernon Nazarene came back with five runs in their half of the first inning with Brooklynn Krum delivering a two-run single and both Montalvo and Mollie Pentz hitting RBI singles. 

Still 5-1 into the fourth inning, Dordt plated five runs on four hits and three Cougars errors to take a 6-5 lead. Cox smacked a two-run single and Annabelle Hensley hit a two-run double in the big Defenders inning.

Mount Vernon Nazarene tied the score 6-6 with an unearned run in the home half of the fourth inning after another RBI single by Montalvo. Krum put the Cougars up 7-6 with an RBI single in the bottom of the fifth.

The Final Numbers:

• Dordt totaled 11 hits, its fifth game this season with 10+ hits
• Stephenson led the Defenders with a career-best three hits, all singles
• Cox and Hensley accounted for two hits each
• Mount Vernon Nazarene totaled 10 hits, led by Montalvo with three and three RBIs
• Madelyn Wine (2-1) pitched the full seven-innings and struck out one

Game One: 9-2 loss vs Spring Arbor | Box Score

The Defenders fell behind 4-0 and lost to Spring Arbor 9-2 in their second game. 

Kacie Karsak led off the bottom of the fifth inning with her third home run of the season, matching Lauren Steenstra for team-high honors, to get the Defenders on the board. Later in the inning, Rule doubled and scored on an RBI single by Cox to trim Spring Arbor's lead to 4-2. 

Spring Arbor came back with five unanswered runs, scoring three in the sixth and two more in the seventh. The Defenders had just one base-runner in the final two innings. 

Alexa Kopaska (1-2) gave up seven hits and three earned runs in 5.1 innings. Bailey Sample pitched the final 1.2 innings and allowed three runs, just one earned.

Offensively, five different Defenders had one hit, with Rule and Karsak recording the lone extra-base hits. Cox, Kreuz and Ashtyn Grissom all had singles.

Nicole Barbeau, Grace Luby and Elaina Walker all had two hits to lead Spring Arbor's 11-hit attack. Emilee Underwood (3-2) pitched the complete game and earned her third win of the season.