HIRAM, Ohio - May 2, 2022 – Hiram College softball wrapped up the 2022 regular season with a doubleheader split against the DePauw University Tigers, bouncing back from a 3-0, game-one defeat to top the Tigers in game two, 9-3. With the split, Hiram wraps up the regular season with a 21-13 (13-3 NCAC) record and will head into the NCAC Softball Tournament as the No. 2 seed, while the Tigers will host the tournament as the No. 1 seed and with a 31-7 (15-1 NCAC) regular-season record.
 
GAME ONE: DEPAUW 3, HIRAM 0
Cami Henry and Darian Kanno combined to allow just four hits over the first four frames, as two of the top pitchers in the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) battled it out in the early going of game one.
 
In the top of the fifth though, DePauw scratched out a run against Kanno to take the lead. Kelsey Bernhard drew a hit-by-pitch to lead off the frame and took second on a wild pitch. Kanno got the next batter, Kate Geary, swinging, but Paige Price smacked a triple to right-center, scoring Bernhard to give the Tigers a 1-0 lead.
 
Giselle Chavez picked up the Terriers' second hit of the day of Henry in the bottom of the frame, but after Henry got the next two batters, DePauw added to their lead in the top of the sixth.
 
Emily Timberman led off the inning with a single, and Drew Bratcher followed with a single of her own to put two on with nobody out. Grace Smith's sacrifice bunt moved the runners up a bag, and Jade Mejia Wick made it 2-0 with a sacrifice fly to right. Bernhard then tacked on another run, blooping a single down the left-field line to score Bratcher and make it 3-0 in favor of the Tigers.
 
Hiram then looked to respond in the bottom of the frame, as Melissa Galindo reached on an error and stole second, and Giselle Bahena drew a hit-by-pitch to put two on with just one out. But again, Henry and the Tigers escaped the jam, getting a flyout and a popout to send things to the seventh.
 
Kanno worked a 1-2-3 top of the seventh to give Hiram one last chance, and although the Terriers would load the bases on a walk, two errors and a hit-by-pitch, Henry struck out the next two batters to end the threat and eke out the 3-0 victory.
 
Kanno (9-5) took the loss for the Terriers, allowing three runs on seven hits, striking out six over 7.0 innings pitched. Henry (23-5) earned the win for DePauw, allowing just two hits and striking out 11 over 7.0 innings pitched.
 
Chavez and Leah Valdez tallied the Terriers' lone hits at the plate, while Bahena and Abriana Schwartz each drew a walk.
 
GAME TWO: HIRAM 9, DEPAUW 3
After Jeskari Rodriguez set the Tigers down in order in the top of the first, Hiram got things going quickly in the bottom of the frame.
 
Galindo led off with a single, Schwartz reached on an error, and Bahena drew a hit-by-pitch to load the bases for Kanno, who bounced a single up the middle to score a pair and give Hiram a 2-0 lead. Angel Santellan then reached on a fielder's choice as Bahena scored on a DePauw throwing error to extend the Terriers' lead to 3-0.
 
And after Rodriguez worked around a two-out double in the top of the second, the Terriers got right back to it, adding two more in the bottom of the inning.
 
With two outs, back-to-back singles by Schwartz and Bahena brought up Kanno, who again delivered a pair of RBI, this time with a double to deep left, scoring a pair to give Hiram a 5-0 lead.
 
The Tigers would get one back on Alyssa Anderson's infield single in the top of the third, but Rodriguez got the next two Tigers, including a strikeout looking of Timberman, to strand two and prevent DePauw from further cutting into Hiram's lead.
 
Hiram would get the run right back in the bottom of the frame, as with two-on and two outs, following Hunter Whitton's single and Valdez's walk, Galindo lanced a single up the middle, scoring Whitton from second to extend Hiram's lead back to five, 6-1.
 
Again though, DePauw rallied in the top of the fourth. Katie Mathies drew a one-out walk, and Smith followed with a triple to left-center, scoring Mathies to again cut Hiram's lead down to four. The Tigers then attempted a squeeze, but the Terriers turned two, as Santellan threw Smith out at home, and Bahena caught Mejia Wick trying to take second to end the inning and prevent any further damage.
 
After a scoreless bottom of the fourth and top of the fifth, Hiram added another in the bottom of the sixth. Taking advantage of a pair of Tiger defensive miscues, Whitton reached on an error and came around to score on Valdez's sacrifice bunt to extend the lead to 7-2.
 
And after Rodriguez worked around a leadoff single in the top of the sixth, Hiram plated two more in the bottom of the sixth, taking advantage of three more defensive miscues by the Tigers.
 
Back-to-back errors put Kanno and Santellan on first and third for Maricruz Gonzalez, who reached on another error, allowing both Kanno and Santellan to come around to score to extend Hiram's lead to 9-2.
 
And though DePauw loaded the bases and pushed a run across on Goose Moore's RBI single in the top of the seventh, Rodriguez got out of the jam with three popouts to strand three and finish off the 9-3 Hiram victory, the Terriers' first win over DePauw since 2015.
 
Rodriguez (8-6) earned the win for Hiram, allowing three runs over five hits over 7.0 innings pitched, while Kandra Butcher (2-1) took the loss for DePauw, allowing six runs, four earned, on six hits over 2.2 innings pitched.
 
Kanno led Hiram at the plate, going 2-for-4 with a double, run scored and four RBI, while Galindo tallied a team-high three hits, going 3-for-5 with a run scored and RBI.
 
Bahena, who saw her program and conference record 24-game hitting streak get snapped in game one, went 2-for-3 with two runs scored, extending her on-base streak to 26 games.
 
The Terriers next travel to Greencastle, Ind. for the 2022 NCAC Softball Tournament, beginning Friday, May 6. Hiram, as the No. 2 seed, will open the double-elimination tournament against the No. 3-seeded Denison University Big Red on Friday, May 6 at 10:00 a.m.