INDIANAPOLIS – Seven home runs, including three each from
Eryn Dillon and
Ali Mosier lifted the IUPUI softball team to a doubleheader sweep over Valparaiso Wednesday evening at the IUPUI Softball Complex.
Dillon, who entered the day with three home runs on the season, hit two of the three blasts in Game 1 helping the Jags pull off a 6-4 win, while Mosier hit two of her three homers in Game 2 – the last of which was a walk-off, two-run home run – to finish off an 11-3 victory. The wins upped the Jags record to 21-10 overall, while Valparaiso fell to 8-19.
Brooke Boetjer earned both victories in relief, improving her season record to 15-8.
Maggie Good got the scoring started with a RBI single in the second inning of Game 1, before Dillon hit a two-run home run to right-center in the third to up IUPUI's lead to 3-0.
The Jaguars looked to be in control, but two runs in the fourth and fifth innings from Valparaiso put it in front for the first time 4-3. But just as the Crusaders seemed to have all the momentum, back-to-back solo homers from Dillon and Mosier in the bottom of the fifth quickly catapulted the Jags back in front, 5-4.
A sacrifice fly from
Roni Patterson in the bottom of the sixth gave IUPUI an insurance run, but Boetjer escaped a first and third jam with two outs by picking up a strikeout to complete the two-run win.
After falling behind early in the opener, Valparaiso struck first in Game 2 with a run in the top of the first off IUPUI start
Nickole Finch, but a two-run homer off the bat of
Taylor Chitwood in the bottom of the second placed the Jaguars in front.
A Mosier solo home run to left field in the third doubled the IUPUI lead at 3-1, but similar to Game 1 the Crusaders rallied with two runs in the fifth to tie the score. It could have been worse for the Jags in the fifth though as Boetjer got out of a bases loaded jam with a strike out to keep the game tied.
But again, IUPUI was resilient scoring four runs in the bottom of the fifth to open a 7-3 cushion. Two runs were scored on a double from Patterson, and then Dillon hit her third homer of the day to left plating Patterson to push the lead to four runs.
Boetjer set down Valpo in order in the sixth, and then the IUPUI offense put the game away. Good reached on error to start the inning, and she was joined on the base paths by
Megan Cory who reached via a hit by pitch. Following a sacrifice bunt,
Jazmine Pedrotti lined a single to center that scored two runs, and then Mosier ended the game with a walk-off, opposite field two-run home run to complete the 11-3 win.
Dillon led the way with five total RBI on the day, followed by Mosier with four.
In her first career start, Finch struck out a career-high eight batters in four and two-thirds innings of work.
Up next for the Jaguars is their first Summit League road trip April 3-4 at Fort Wayne.
