ORANGE CITY, Iowa-- Katie Merchant (FR/South Haven, Minn.) tossed a three-hit shutout and Allie McCain (SR/Duvall, WA) had three hits while driving in a pair of runs as the University of Jamestown softball team won 3-0 over Dordt (Iowa) College in the opening game of Friday's doubleheader.
The Defenders spoiled a strong pitching performance by Kat Miska (SO/Pequot Lakes, MN) in the nightcap, using a walk-off home run in the bottom of the eighth inning to win 3-2 for a split.
Jamestown, now 27-15 overall and 11-9 in Great Plains Athletic Conference play, travel to Morningside (Iowa) for a 1 p.m. doubleheader Saturday to finish the regular season.
Game 1: Jimmies 3, Defenders 0
Katie Merchant scattered three hits over seven innings to record her second shutout of the season Merchant (12-7) retired 11 batters in a row after giving up a leadoff single in the second and did not allow another hit until a leadoff single in the sixth.
Morgan Geiszler (SO/Horace, ND) drove in Meghan Ramage (SR/Grand Forks, ND) with a first-inning single to give UJ a 1-0 lead. Allie McCain made it 3-0 with a two-run single in the second.
Geiszler and Sydney Prussia (SO/Detroit Lakes, MN) both had two hits for the Jimmies. Meghan Ramage, Katie Reisdorfer (SO/Fresno, CA), and Mariah Martinez (FR/Visalia, Calif.) also recorded hits.
Game 2: Defenders 3, Jimmies 2 (8 innings)
Rachel Evavold homered with one out in the bottom of the eighth to give Dordt a 3-2 win and a split of the doubleheader.
Dordt took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the fourth on a solo home run by Marissa Vandenberg, then led 2-0 after Jessica Oules singled home Brooklyn Van Oort.
Allie McCain cut the lead in half in the Jimmies' next time at bat, singling through the hole at short to score Steph Cota (FR/Tucson, Ariz.).
A two-out single by Mariah Martinez in the top of the seventh tied the game for Jamestown.
Miska (12-7) struck out 11 batters in 7 1/3 innings, the sixth time she has fanned 10 or more batters this season.
Mikayla Frost (JR/Melba, ID), Morgan Geiszler, and Mariah Wick (SO/Jamestown, N.D.) also had hits for UJ.
