WARREN, Mich. – Coming off their split at OCC Saturday, Macomb Softball continued their strong play as of late by sweeping the defending MCCAA Eastern Conference Champion Henry Ford Hawks Sunday (April 3) on Macomb's South Campus. The Monarchs, now 7-4 overall and 4-2 in the MCCAA East, won game one, 8-6, before taking the nightcap by a 6-5 final.
With the pair of losses to the Monarchs, the Hawks ended the day at 9-3 overall and 2-2 in the MCCAA East.
GAME ONE: Macomb 8, Henry Ford 6
Carly Sierzenga (Macomb, Mich./Dakota) got the start in the circle and the win, improving to 5-1 on the season after striking out 11 Hawks and limiting the opposition's high-octane attack to only three earned runs. For the second time in as many days, Sierzenga helped her own cause by blasting a home run, while Danielle Erickson (Sterling Heights, Mich./Sterling Heights), Nikki Syracuse (Macomb, Mich./Dakota) and Rylee Thomas (Harrison Twp., Mich./L'Anse Creuse) led the offensive charge in game one with three hits each.
Thomas and Skye Norris (Macomb, Mich./Anchor Bay) connected on a double each for the Monarchs in the huge conference win. Norris and Elizabeth Townsend (Ira Twp., Mich./Anchor Bay) had two hits each, while Jenna Casey (New Baltimore, Mich./Anchor Bay) and Samantha Scott (Romeo, Mich./Eisenhower) rounded out the offense with one hit apiece.
GAME TWO: Macomb 6, Henry Ford 5
Jackie Seyfarth (Sterling Heights, Mich./Stevenson) came on in relief and tossed four innings of three-hit ball to earn her second win of the campaign. Seyfarth got the ball with the score tied 3-3 and only allowed two runs (one earned) the rest of the way to help the Monarchs secure the impressive conference sweep.
Danielle Erickson remained hot at the plate in game two with three more hits to go 6-for-8 on the day. Jenna Casey and Elizabeth Townsend followed with two hits each, while Rylee Thomas drove in a team-high two runs in the narrow 6-5 victory. Nikki Syracuse connected on her first collegiate home run with a fourth inning solo blast that broke a 3-3 tie. Syracuse hit two home runs in a single game during the spring trip, but both long balls were erased due to the game being canceled.