GREENCASTLE, Ind. - May 13, 2022 – Hiram softball defeated the No. 14 Piedmont University Lions, 4-1, in their opening game at the DePauw Regional on Friday at the DePauw Tigers Field to advance into the winner's bracket.
Hiram will next face the 10th-ranked Berry College Vikings on Saturday, May 14 at 10 a.m., with a spot in the regional championship game on the line.
Playing as the road team in their opening contest, Hiram got off to a quick start to get on the scoreboard first and play from in front. Down in the count 1-2,
Abriana Schwartz led off the top of the first with a solo shot to left, her first of the year, giving the Terriers a 1-0 lead.
Jeskari Rodriguez then worked a 1-2-3 bottom of the first, and Hiram looked to add to their lead in the top of the second.
Angel Santellan led off the inning with a single, and with a hit-by-pitch and a walk, Hiram loaded the bases against Martina Maloch and the Lions with just one out. However, Maloch got a pair of groundouts to end the threat and keep Hiram's lead at just one.
That would be enough for Rodriguez though, as she cruised through the second and third, setting down the nine of the first 10 batters she faced.
Rodriguez then got the first two outs in the bottom of the fourth to make it 11 of 12 retired, but with a single and two walks, Piedmont loaded the bases with two outs, looking to tie things up or take the lead.
Hiram made a pitching change, bringing in
Darian Kanno, but Hannah Smith drew another walk to tie the score at 1-1. However, Kanno got the next batter to strike out looking, to keep things tied at one, and bring the Terriers back to the plate.
And the Terriers would quickly respond, loading the bases themselves with nobody out. Schwartz led off the fifth with a single and moved to second on
Kylie Perez's fielder's choice.
Giselle Bahena then walked to load the bases, and one batter later, Santellan laced a two-run double to left-center, scoring both Perez and Bahena to retake the lead.
Leah Valdez then laid down a picture-perfect squeeze, scoring Kanno from third to make it 4-1 in favor of the Terriers.
Piedmont then looked to answer in the bottom of the frame, putting runners on second and third with just one out, but Kanno again got out of the jam, striking out a pair to prevent any damage.
The Lions would threaten again in the bottom of the sixth, loading the bases once again on Lyndzi Partlow's single and walks drawn by Hannah Smith and Jasmine Lowery.
But once again, Kanno worked out of the jam without allowing a run, getting Drew Graham to ground into a fielder's choice, and Rebekah Stegmayer to ground out to the pitcher to send the Terriers back up to the plate in the top of the seventh.
And though Hiram wasn't able to tack on an insurance run in the top of the seventh, Kanno shut the door in the bottom of the inning, striking out two and setting down the side to give the Terriers a 4-1 victory and advance Hiram into the winner's bracket.
Kanno (11-6) earned the win, striking out five over 3.1 innings of scoreless relief, while Maloch (14-5) took the loss, allowing four runs on seven hits over 7.0 innings pitched.
Rodriguez got the start for Hiram, allowing one run on two hits, striking out three over 3.2 innings pitched.
Santellan led the Terriers at the plate, going 2-for-4 with a double and two RBI, while Schwartz went 2-for-4 with a home run, run scored and RBI.
With the win, the Terriers move to 25-14 and advance into the winner's bracket, where they'll face the 10th-ranked Berry College Vikings on Saturday, May 14 at 10:00 a.m., with the winner clinching a spot in the regional championship game.
