PEORIA, Ill. — The Knox College softball team opened its season on Thursday at the Blue Angel Invite at the Louisville Slugger Sports Complex, dropping a pair of games on the day, the first to host Mount Mary University, 11-7, followed by a 10-1 defeat in five innings to the University of Wisconsin-Platteville.
In the opener against Mount Mary (1-0), Knox yielded a run in the top half of the first before responding with four in its half. Juniors Maddie Hicks and Kylie Thomson each provided RBI singles, fifth-year Alycea Burnett walked with the bases loaded to force in a run and Taylor Goudschaal brought home the final run with a grounder to short.
The score remained 4-1 until the Blue Angels rallied for five in the fifth, the last two go-ahead runs being unearned. Again the Prairie Fire had an answer, knotting the game at six when senior Maddie Poetzinger scampered home from third on a wild pitch and Burnett delivered an RBI single to score Thomson, who had doubled.
But Mount Mary got a two-out run in the sixth and four more in the seventh, the big blow being a three-run double. Burnett drove in her third run of the game in the bottom half with a sacrifice fly, but that was all Knox could muster.
Charlie Davison (0-1) took the loss, hurling 6.1 innings while surrendering nine earned runs while striking out three. Taylynn Kizer and Thomson each had three hits for the Prairie Fire to lead the nine-hit attack.
In the second game that began at 10:27 p.m., Pioneer pitcher Taylor Roughen (1-0) was the story, twirling a five-inning no-hitter with 13 strikeouts while yielding a lone unearned run.
Wisconsin-Platteville roughed up Prairie Fire hurler Londyn Nelson (0-1) for four runs in the second, all of which were unearned due to a pair of errors. Nelson was chased from the circle in the fourth after the first three hitters reached base, and by the end of the frame, UW-Platteville enjoyed an 8-0 lead.
Knox staved off the run rule after loading the bases in the fifth with nobody out on a hit batter, walk and a dropped throw at first on a bunt. The run came home when the Pioneer catcher attempted a pickoff at first but threw the ball into right field, allowing Thomson to trot across the plate from third. A two-run single in the bottom half, however, brought the game to a close.
Knox has a quick turnaround on Friday with the first pitch against Loras College scheduled for 10 a.m. The Prairie Fire will conclude their games at the Blue Angel Invite against Augustana College at 2:30 p.m. Fans who wish to watch the games can do so for a fee, or simply keep up with live stats. Links for both are available on the softball schedule page on the official website of Knox College athletics, PrairieFire.Knox.edu.
