MASON CITY, Iowa – Marshalltown Community College knocked out 10 homeruns to complete the season sweep of the NIACC softball team with 17-3, 12-1 wins, both in five innings, over the Trojans on Sunday.
Marshalltown pitcher Felicia Durflinger had a 7-for-7 afternoon with four homeruns and nine RBI, while infielder Hally Lenzine had three homeruns and five RBI in the doubleheader. Krista Morris added a 6-for-6 effort with three RBI for the Tigers.
Trojan pitchers Hailey Eckstein (Fr., Larsen, WI) and Jessica Robinett (Fr., Maxwell, IA) had rough days on the mound. The Tigers outhit the Trojans 33-11, drew 10 walks in game one and hit six homeruns in game two.
NIACC (11-29, 1-25 in the ICCAC) struggled at the plate, especially with runners on base. NIACC only had two hits in the games with runners on base. Krista Grutz’s (Fr., Dubuque, IA) 4-for-5 day led the NIACC effort. No Trojans had multiple RBI.
The Trojans recorded the first run in game one when Grutz scored in the bottom of the first on a throwing error after Lenzine at catcher. Lenzine tried to throw out Grutz at third after a wild pitch, but the throw ended up in left field and Grutz score easily.
NIACC’s 1-0 lead was short lived. Marshalltown (26-20, 15-13) scored 11 runs over the next three innings, with five of those runs coming off of two homeruns and an RBI double by Durflinger, who was the designated player in the game. Morris also had multiple RBI in those innings with three. Marshalltown sent 27 batters to the plate during those innings.
NIACC scored a pair in the bottom of the fourth to make it 11-3. Katie Gross (Fr., Crystal Lake, IA) knocked in Kaylor Tiffany (Fr., Cornville, AZ) on a single, and two batters later Beth Mildenhall’s (Fr., Eldora, IA) sacrifice fly to centerfield scored Anne Studer (Fr., Titonka, IA) to end NIACC’s scoring.
Marshalltown scored six in the fifth inning, including two more off of Durflinger’s third homerun of the game, to end game one at 17-3.
NIACC’s only run in game two came while trailing by five in the second. Tiffany hit a single for NIACC’s last hit of the doubleheader to lead off the second. She reached second on a wild pitch, advanced to third on a groundout by Courtney Stephens (Fr., LeGrand, IA), and scored on a groundout by Studer.
The Trojans would only have two base runners after that. Both reached on walks.
For the Tigers in game two, Lenzine was 3-for-4 with three homeruns and four RBI. Durflinger was 3-for-3 with two RBI, and Erica White was 3-for-4 with two RBI.
The wins were Marshalltown’s third and fourth wins against the Trojans this season. The Tigers swept NIACC 17-4 and 10-2 on March 31 in Marshalltown.
NIACC will end the regular season by hosting a doubleheader against DMACC on Tuesday at 3:30 p.m.
GAME ONE
MCC 043 46 – 17 18 1
NIACC 100 20 – 3 7 1
Marshalltown stats
Stacy Roggentein (2 K, 4 BB) and Hally Lenzine.
2B – Marisa Bashem 2, Megan Bolten, Felicia Durflinger, Molly Underwood
HR – Durflinger 3, Krista Morris
Multiple hits – Durflinger 4, Morris 4, Bashem 3, Bolten 3, Underwood 2
Multiple RBI – Durflinger 7, Morris 3, Bashem 2, Dena Martin 2
NIACC stats
Hailey Eckstein (4-14)(10 BB), Jessica Robinett (5) and Lisa Jorgensen.
2B – Krista Grutz, Eckstein
Multiple hits – Grutz 3
GAME TWO
MCC 503 13 – 12 15 1
NIACC 010 00 – 1 4 0
Marshalltown stats
Durflinger (2 K, 2 BB) and Bashem.
2B – Erica White 2, Durflinger
HR – Lenzine 3, Durflinger, Bashem, White
Multiple hits – White 3, Lenzine 3, Durflinger 3, Morris 2, Underwood 2
Multiple RBI – Lenzine 4, Bashem 2, White 2, Durflinger 2
NIACC stats
Jessica Robinett (6-12)(4 K, 2 HBP) and Cassie Pappas.
2B – Grutz
