LC Softball Goes 1-1 at Oakland City

[March 26, 2019] 

On Saturday, the Lincoln College Softball team traveled to Oakland City, Indiana for a pair of seven-inning games against the Oakland City University Mighty Oaks. Lincoln dropped game one 9-0 in five innings, but rallied to win game two 9-5 in extra innings.

Lincoln could not get anything going on offense against Oakland City in game one as freshman Brooke Friesner (Moweaqua) accounted for the team’s only hits, going 2-for-2. Freshman Kerstin Osborne (Lincoln) took the loss in two innings of work.

Game two saw OCU score twice in the first and push across two in the third to take a 4-0 lead into the top of the fourth. It was then that Lincoln was able to break through for their first run of the day when a single by junior Seleste Smith (Warrensburg) scored sophomore Melissa Benson (Morris). LC had to settle for just the one run in the fourth, but getting on the board was a much needed confidence boost for the Lady Lynx. From that point on, starting pitcher Olivia Sanders (Clinton) was able to shut down the Might Oak’s offense, throwing five straight scoreless innings to give her team a chance to come from behind.

The LC offense made the most of that opportunity in the top of the seventh when Lincoln hitters broke out for three runs to tie the game at 4-4. Two of those runs were driven in on a single by Kerstin Osborne and the other scored on a wild pitch.

In the bottom of the seventh, Sanders stranded an Oaks baserunner at third to send the game into extra innings. After a scoreless eighth, Lincoln broke the game open with a five-run outburst that put The Lady Lynx in command. In that inning, sophomore Rodjahnae DuPont-Barlow (Clinton) started at second base due to the international tie breaker rule being in effect.

Madison Howard

After Brooke Friesner layed down a sacrifice bunt moving Dupont-Barlow to third, Kerstin Osborne hit a line shot to right center to score Dupont-Barlow and put Lincoln ahead for the first time. Lincoln went on to load the basses and force four more runs across the plate in the inning to take a 9-4 lead into the bottom of the ninth.

In that final frame, OCU was able to score one run, however the Lynx defense buckled down and got the Mighty Oaks to line out twice to Dupont-Barlow in centerfield while Sanders struck out the final batter to seal the win for the LC. The victory was Sanders second of the season and moved the team’s overall record to 3-15.

Offensive leaders on the day for Lincoln included Kerstin Osborne (3-5, 3 RBI's), Melissa Benson (4-5, 2 runs scored). On the mound, Olivia Sanders faced 66 batters over a total of 11 innings pitched with 4 strikeouts and just 2 walks.

[Mark Tippett
Lincoln College
Sports Information]