The Forester softball team blanked visiting Grinnell College 11-0 and 21-0 on Sunday in a pair of 5-inning games. Lake Forest freshmen Jenny McTague and Audrey Haderlein each hit two home runs and combined for 14 RBI in game two.
McTague hit a grand slam to cap off a 5-run first inning as the home team jumped out to the early lead. Haderlein and McTague each belted two-run homers early in the third inning and Haderlein added a grand slam of her own later in the 12-run frame. Haderlein also singled to the fence in the fourth inning to plate two more Foresters. Her eight runs batted in during the game are just one shy of the program record set by Shelby Neill in 2007. It was just the second time in team history that a pair of Foresters each cleared the fence twice in the same game, matching the accomplishment of Jill Pfund and Christy Condon in 2008.
Haderlein, sophomroe third baseman Kaleigh Ambrose, and junior centerfielder Kayla Borgra each had three base hits in the contest and Haderlein and Ambrose scored four runs apiece. Senior shortstop Sam Ritsema went hitless in her final regular season home game but drew three walks and, along with McTague, scored three times.
In the circle, McTague allowed just one base hit and struck out 11 batters in just five innings for her second shutout of the season. She improved to 11-2 with a 1.12 earned run average on the year.
Forester sophomore pitcher Jessi Werner also tossed a one-hit shutout in the opener of the doubleheader, striking out six without issuing a walk. She is now 11-6 on the season with a 2.19 ERA.
Lake Forest scored in each of their four at-bats in game one, beginning with an RBI-single by Ambrose in the first. Junior leftfielder Audrey Djukic drove in one on a base hit in the second and Ritsema and McTague added two-run doubles later in the inning. Borgra hit a two-run homer and sophomore catcher Alex Hemmer a solo shot in the third inning. Freshman Renee Haderlein also sent one over the fence with a runner on base in the fourth.
With seven home runs in the doubleheader, Lake Forest raised its school record total on the season to 42, 10 more than the previous mark set in 2007. Both Haderleins hit their first with Audrey adding another. Borgra belted her fifth, Hemmer her sixth, and McTague her second and third.
The Foresters improved to 23-8 overall and 9-1 in Midwest Conference play. Grinnell finished the year 0-22 overall and 0-10 in the league.
By finishing in first place in the MWC South Division, Lake Forest clinched the right to host the 2014 MWC Championship Tournament next weekend. The Foresters will take on Lawrence University at noon on Friday after St. Norbert College and Monmouth College play at 10:00 a.m. The first round losers will play again in am elimination game at 2:00 in the afternoon and the winners will face each other at 4:00. One of Friday's 1-1 teams will be eliminated after losing Saturday's 10:00 a.m. game and the winner would need to defeat the only undefeated team in the tourney at noon and 2:00 to claim the title and advance to the NCAA Tournament.