Softball comebacks against Carroll then falls to No. 18 IWU

DECATUR, Ill. – The University of Wisconsin-Platteville softball team came back from behind to defeat Carroll University, 8-5, and then was setback by 18th-ranked Illinois Wesleyan, 5-1, on Saturday at Borg Warner Field in Decatur, Ill.

Carroll had its bats going right from the get go, and used four hits to score three runs in the bottom of the first. Two errors by Carroll helped the Pioneers get on the board in the top of the second inning, 3-1.

Junior Haley Salazar delivered a one-out bases clearing triple in the fifth inning, give UW-Platteville its first lead of the game, 4-3. Carroll retook the lead in bottom half of the fifth on a two-run homer, 5-3 .

The Pioneers started the seventh inning with back-to-back doubles by sophomore Carley Rote and Salazar. Senior Ellyn Goerdt singled to move Salazar to third, and a one-out error allowed Goerdt and Salazar to score, 6-4. UW-Platteville added two more insurance run to make it an 8-5 game.

Sophomore Cassie Roach put Carroll down in order to complete her two hitless scoreless relief innings and earned the win.

 Freshman Jess Butzen sat down the first nine Illinois Wesleyan batters in order, but the second time through the Titan's order didn't go as smoothly. IWU tallied six hits for four runs in the fourth inning taking a 4-0 lead.

The Titans added one more in the top of the seventh inning, making it a five-run game. Rote lead off the Pioneers half of the inning, with a solo home run, but then IWU put out the next three Pioneer hitters.

The Titans held UW-Platteville to four hits, while Butzen gave up 11 hits and struck out six Titans.

The Pioneers will play a doubleheader against Millikin on Sunday starting at 1 p.m.