The Lake Forest College softball team won the opener 6-5 and game two 12-3 in six innings at Monmouth College Sunday afternoon. The first victory was the 500th in head coach Joe Kinsella's career and the second extended the Foresters' winning streak to nine games.
Lake Forest jumped out to an early lead in the opener on a two-run double by junior first baseman Teagan Delarwelle in the top of the first inning.
A Fighting Scot homer in the bottom of the frame made the score 2-1 and it remained that way until the fifth, when senior Forester right fielder Elena Chrisman singled in a run and later scored on a sacrifice fly by freshman catcher Kyla Chevalier.
The visitors added a run in the sixth on an RBI fielder's choice groundout off the bat of sophomore shortstop Kaylee Purgatorio and tacked on what proved to be an important tally in the seventh on a base hit by sophomore designated player Cheyenne Pelliettiere.
Sophomore pitcher Hannah Smith retired the first two batters in the bottom of the seventh but two errors, a single, and a home run made the score 6-5. Her sixth strikeout of the contest ended the rally and raised her record on the season to 12-3.
Delarwelle and sophomore second baseman Kelly Collins each had two of Lake Forest's nine hits in the opener. Collins turned in another two-hit performance in game two and was matched by Chrisman and freshman third baseman Cadence Dempsey. Freshman left fielder Brooke Swiecki had a career-high three base hits as the team racked up 14.
Chrisman began game two with her fifth home run in the last seven contests and third leading off the first inning.
Monmouth answered with a run in the bottom of the first but the Foresters pulled back ahead with four in the second. Chrisman drove in the first with a bases loaded walk and two came home on a base hit by Collins. Delarwelle singled in Chrisman to make the score 5-1.
Lake Forest added three more with two outs in the third. Purgatorio tripled, Swiecki and Chrisman hit back-to-back doubles, and Dempsey added an RBI single.
After the home team scored twice in the bottom of the fourth, the Foresters matched that in both the fifth and sixth. Dempsey's 15th double of 2023 drove in a run and tied the second-highest single-season total in team history. She scored on a pinch-hit single by freshman Kayla Collins. Base hits by Swiecki and freshman right fielder Morgan Traxinger plated runs in the sixth and closed out the scoring.
Sophomore Brooke Challe and senior Kristen Calhoun split the game in the circle, pitching three innings apiece.
Kinsella is now 501-371-2 in his 24th season as a collegiate head coach. His record in 17 years since coming to Lake Forest is 383-239-2.
The Foresters improved to 25-12-1 overall and finished the regular season 12-4 in Midwest Conference play. Monmouth's season ends at 13-27 overall and 5-11 in the league.
Lake Forest will be the #2 seed at next weekend's four-team MWC Tournament and will take on Grinnell College in the opening round Friday at 10:00 a.m. Illinois College is hosting the double-elimination event and will face Cornell College at noon. The first round losers will face off at 2:00 and the winners at 4:00. The final two or three games of the tournament will take place on Saturday.
