The Forester softball team defeated Carroll University 12-4 in six innings before falling 4-3 in eight to Lawrence University at the Midwest Conference Classic on Sunday. Junior second baseman Vasi Panos had a career-high four base hits in Lake Forest's first game of the day and belted her second home run of the year in the second.
All four hits for Panos against Carroll were singles and the last, which nearly cleared the center field fence, brought home a run that ended the game in the sixth inning. The Foresters pounded out a season-high 19 hits in the contest, matching the seventh-highest total in team history. Seven of the hits were home runs, one shy of the program record.
After falling behind 2-0, Lake Forest hit back-to-back home runs twice during a six-run fourth inning. After a two-run shot by senior centerfielder Whitney Leiderman tied the score, senior rightfielder Kayla Borgra quickly gave the Foresters the lead. They were the second home runs of the season for both players. Three batters later, junior third baseman Kaleigh Ambrose belted another two-run homer and freshman shortstop Kat Beall followed with her second of the season.
Borgra homered again in the bottom of the fifth and junior first baseman hit a solo home run later in the inning and a two-run shot in the sixth. Snarski's second homer tied Ambrose for the team lead with eight on the year and made her and Borgra just the third teammates in school history with multiple home runs in the same game.
Leiderman, Borgra, and Snarski each had three hits in the game while Ambrose and freshman leftfielder Sydney Gardner added two apiece.
A day after becoming the first player in team history to surpass 100 strikeouts in two seasons, junior pitcher Jessi Werner fanned a dozen Pioneers while allowing five hits, five walks, and a pair of earned runs. She is now 13-1 on the season.
Runs were much more difficult for both teams to come by in the Foresters' game against Lawrence, which was scoreless until Panos' two-run homer in the top of the fifth inning.
A leadoff home run in the bottom of the sixth finally got the Vikings on the scoreboard and a two-out RBI-double later in the frame tied the game at two.
Lake Forest regained the lead when junior designated player Alex Hemmer singled in Leiderman in the top of the eighth but a two-out two-run double in the bottom of the inning gave the Foresters their first conference loss of the season.
Forester junior pitcher Jenny McTague went seven-plus innings and allowed five base hits and four walks while striking out six. She was saddled with the loss, although the two runs charged to her in the eighth were unearned.
Lake Forest is now 22-5 overall this season and 8-1 in league play. Carroll fell to 16-9 overall and 5-2 in the conference while Lawrence improved to 16-7 overall and 5-2 in MWC contests.
The Foresters will continue conference play at home next Saturday against Monmouth College. The Alumni Day doubleheader will begin at 1:00 p.m.
