Alyssa Grimm went 4-for-4 in one game and doubled in a run in the other as Lake Forest posted an 11-9 victory over Wheaton College before dropping an 8-3 decision to Stockton University on Monday. They were the Foresters' first two contests at The Spring Games in Clermont, Florida.
Grimm gave her team the early lead against Wheaton with a run-scoring single in the bottom of the first inning. She then stole second, went to third on a passed ball, and scored on a groundout by junior Sydney Wyatt to make the score 2-0.
After the Thunder responded with five runs in the top of the second, Lake Forest pulled back to within one on a two-run homer by Grimm in the third.
Grimm's third base hit of the contest came during a seven-run fourth inning. Junior catcher Haylee Sherlund started the rally with a one-out single and later scored on an error by the Wheaton pitcher. A sacrifice bunt by senior leftfielder Diamond Owens brought home another run and three more came in on a home run by junior first baseman Riley Frisbie. Grimm singled, Wyatt doubled, and senior third baseman Emma Varsbergs followed with a two-run single to make the score 11-5.
Forester sophomore pitcher Maddie Webb pitched the first five innings and then re-entered the game with one out in the sixth after Wheaton scored four runs and had two more runners on base. She retired the next two hitters to escape the jam but ran into trouble in the seventh when the first two Thunder batters reached base. Junior Missy Dieckman-Meyer entered the contest and did not allow either runner to score for her first career save.
Grimm's career-high fourth base hit came in the bottom of the sixth and her eight total bases and three runs scored were also career-bests. Frisbie added three hits and matched Grimm with three runs batted in.
Lake Forest also jumped out to a 2-0 lead against Stockton with both runs coming in the top of the second. Wyatt scored the first on an error and Varsbergs came in on a sacrifice bunt by freshman Hailey Boylan.
After Stockton scored once in the bottom of the second, the Foresters regained their two-run cushion when Grimm doubled in senior centerfielder Maria Zepeda in the third. It was the program record 127th run scored for Zepeda, who drew five walks on the day. She is now five shy of the team record of 70 career bases on balls and four away from matching the mark of 50 stolen bases.
Unfortunately for the Foresters, their scoring stopped there while the Ospreys plated one in the third inning and two in the fourth before breaking the game open with a four-run sixth.
Varsbergs had two of Lake Forest's four base hits in the contest.
The Foresters are now 3-3 on the young season while Wheaton fell to 1-2 and Stockton improved to 3-1.
Lake Forest will take on Montclair State University Tuesday afternoon at 1:30 (ET) and Amherst College at 3:45 (ET).
