DC Earns Non-Conference Split Against Oberlin

DEFIANCE, OHIO -- The Defiance College softball team split a doubleheader with Oberlin College as they fell, 4-3, in the opener but went on to defeat the Yeowomen, 1-0, in the nightcap.

Oberlin (8-14) took a quick 1-0 lead on a sacrifice fly in the first inning of game one, but DC (10-10) responded in the second as a Haley Patty (Bradford) single scored Brooke Gostomsky (Covington) to tie the game at 1-1 after two innings.

Oberlin then took a 2-1 lead in the fourth, but DC added a pair of runs in the fifth. The first came from an RBI-single from junior Kaity Kuhn (Celina) to tie the game and then the Yellow Jackets took the lead as senior Emily Denhard (Troy, Mich./Kolbe Academy) scored on a throwing error to put Defiance in front, 3-2, after five innings. The Yeowomen did not quit, however, scoring one run each in the sixth and seventh innings to bring home a 4-3 victory in the opener.

Junior hurler Sarah Kaya (Lorain/Clearview) gave up four runs, only two earned, on 10 hits while striking out four batters as she fell to 5-6 on the season.  

Sophomore Jordan Osborne (Delaware/Rutherford B. Hayes) led the Yellow Jackets on the offensive end, getting two hits and scoring a run.

The second game was dominated by pitching, as freshman Sydney Zeuch (Mason/Mount Notre Dame) out-dueled Oberlin to finish the day with a 1-0 victory for the Yellow Jackets. 

Defiance's lone run came in the fifth frame, when a single up the middle by sophomore Michaela Bauer (Hicksville) scored Patty, as that run was all they needed to earn the win.

Zeuch improved her record to 2-0 on the season, throwing a complete-game two-hitter, walking two and striking out two hitters.

Defiance looks to begin Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference play on the right foot, as they travel to Bluffton, Ohio for their HCAC opener against Bluffton University on Wednesday, Apr. 5. The doubleheader is scheduled to begin at 3:30 p.m.