WARREN, Mich. – Macomb Softball made the most of its Sophomore Day by sweeping the visiting Skippers of St. Clair County Community College on Saturday (May 6). The Monarchs won game one by a 10-8 final and later topped the Skippers in game two by a 2-0 final tally.
The pair of wins on Sophomore Day evened the Monarchs record on the season at 19-19 overall and 13-13 in conference play.
GAME ONE: Macomb 10, SC4 8
Carly Sierzenga (Macomb, Mich./Dakota) came on in relief and picked up where she left off yesterday by striking out seven Skippers across 5.2 innings of work to earn her fifth win of the campaign and 20
th overall in a Monarch uniform.
Offensively, the Monarchs were once again led by the program's all-time home run leader,
Elizabeth Townsend (New Baltimore, Mich./Anchor Bay). Townsend hit a pair of home runs – the 25
th and 26
th of her career – as part of a perfect 4-for-4 performance that led to a team-high five RBIs.
Brynn Beyer (Macomb, Mich./L'Anse Creuse North) followed Townsend's second big blast with a home run of her own as the pair went back-to-back to spark a five-run fourth inning that helped flip a 5-4 deficit into a 9-5 lead.
Townsend's pair of home runs and Beyer's shot has the tandem tied for the team lead with eight each this season.
While Beyer and Townsend led the long ball department in the opener, four other Monarchs recorded a double each as
Carleigh Bilpo (Sterling Heights, Mich./Henry Ford II),
Danielle Erickson (Sterling Heights, Mich./Sterling Heights),
Samantha Scott (Romeo, Mich./Eisenhower) and
Rylee Thomas (Harrison Twp., Mich./L'Anse Creuse) all connected on timely extra-base hits in the 10-8 win.
Townsend's four hits paced the Monarchs' 13-hit attack, while Beyer, Bilpo and
Savanna Clark (St. Clair, Mich./St. Clair) recorded two hits each.
GAME TWO: Macomb 2, SC4 0
Allison Vogt (Chesterfield, Mich./Anchor Bay) and
Katelynn Fraser (Macomb, Mich./Eisenhower) tossed a combined shutout to lead the Monarchs to a 2-0 win in game two. The win completed the six-game series sweep over SC4 this season.
Vogt got the start in the circle and cruised through 4.1 innings of nine strikeout ball to earn her 11
th win of the season. The 11 wins is good for second in the MCCAA Eastern Conference and ties for fifth in the entire MCCAA. Fraser came on in the fifth and proceeded to earn her first save at the collegiate level after tossing 2.2 innings of one-hit ball to secure the 2-0 shutout victory.
The Monarchs went up 1-0 in the fourth after
Samantha Scott moved
Brynn Beyer over to third and a subsequent Skippers error brought Beyer in to score. Then in the sixth,
Carleigh Bilpo came up with a clutch insurance run with an RBI single to right field that brought
Rylee Thomas in to score for the 2-0 lead and eventual win.
Bilpo and
Danielle Erickson led the Monarchs with two hits each, while Beyer recorded the lone extra-base hit of game two with a double in the fourth inning.
UP NEXT: at Mott Sunday
The Monarchs visit Kearsley Park in Flint for a MCCAA East doubleheader with Mott Sunday (May 7). First pitch is slated for 1 p.m.
Thank you, Sophomores!
Macomb Athletics thanks the 2023 Macomb Softball Sophomores for all of the memories and for their countless contributions to the program over the years! The 2023 Sophomores:
Jenna Alessandrini,
Emma Lautenbach,
Natalie Lerchenfeld,
Samantha Scott,
Carly Sierzenga,
Rylee Thomas,
Danielle Erickson and
Elizabeth Townsend
