Logan softballers sweep SIC

BY JOHN D. HOMAN

Logan Media Services

CARTERVILLE – The John A. Logan College softball team erased a 5-0 deficit Tuesday to beat Southeastern Illinois, 7-6, in the first game of a doubleheader. The Vols then cruised to a 9-1 win in the nightcap behind a pair of home runs to sweep the twin bill.

The Falcons plated five runs in the first inning of Game 1 thanks in large part to a grand slam off the bat of catcher Hannah Cockrum. Logan tallied a single run in the second on a double from Sara Kroeger and RBI single by Jessica Hirsch; two runs in the fourth on a double by Taylor Brackett, walk to Kortney Crawford, RBI single from Taylor Price and RBI single from Ana Duda; and three runs in the fifth on an RBI single from Crawford and two-run triple by Hirsch for a 6-5 lead.

The Vols added a run in the sixth to make the score 7-5 when Duda singled and came around to score on an RBI double by Jayda Rendleman.

Meanwhile, Logan freshman pitcher Heather Johnson shut the door on the Falcons in the second through sixth innings. She then gave up a single run in the seventh, but closed out the win by getting Jordan Shotton to ground out to shortstop with the tying run on third base.

Johnson (6-5 on the spring) scattered nine hits and struck out five. Taylor Fletcher took the loss for Southeastern.

Hirsch led the offense with three hits and three RBIs. Duda and Rendleman contributed two hits each. Crawford, Brackett, Kroeger, Johnson, Price and Marissa Montgomery accounted for one hit apiece.

The Vols took command early in Game 2, notching four runs in the bottom of the first inning. Johnson stroked a three-run homer to left, driving in Hirsch and Price, who had singled. Julian Sroka added an RBI single. Logan upped the advantage to 5-0 in the second on an RBI double by Johnson.

The Falcons scored their one run of the game in the fourth when Shotton drove in Paige Hughey with a single. The Vols countered with two runs in the bottom of the frame to make the score 7-1 as Duda singled in Crawford and Johnson’s groundout scored Price.

Logan put an exclamation point on the victory in the sixth when Sroka doubled with two outs and Crawford, a Pinckneyville native, belted a walk-off two-run homer, her first collegiate round tripper.

“It felt amazing,” said Crawford of her blast over the right field fence. “I didn’t know it was going out, but then I heard everyone screaming, so I said, ‘Oh my God.’ It was a perfect pitch. I hit six in high school, but this is my first in college. It is definitely special to me.”

Johnson paced the offense for the Vols with two hits and a whopping five runs batted in. Sroka and Price had two hits each. Hirsch, Duda, Rendleman, and Crawford had one hit.

Kroeger earned the win and improves to 4-0. She gave up six hits in five innings of work, struck out none and walked two. Callie Richerson was tagged with the loss for SIC.

Logan improves to 7-5 in the Great Rivers Athletic Conference and 14-8 overall. The Falcons fall to 1-9 in the league and 5-13 overall.

“It was a nice bounce back today,” said Vols head coach Bruce Jilek of the sweep. Logan had lost a pair to Lake Land College Monday.

“In thefirst game today, our pitching just wasn’t there early. Southeastern pretty much handled us and we had a heck of a hill to climb. But I told the girls we had seven innings to play and could make a comeback…and we did.”

Jilek said the team played much better in the second game.

“It was nice to see the three-run homer by Heather and then the walk-off home run by Crawford,” he said. “We hit the ball well and Kroeger pitched effectively. She gets herself into a little mess here and there, but seems to bail herself out. She started well in the first inning and that’s what we have to have.”

The Vols play host to Rend Lake at 2 p.m. Thursday and close out the week at Southwestern Illinois College in Belleville Saturday at noon.