CATHEDRAL CITY, Calif.— The Maryland softball team split its first two games of the Mary Nutter Classic on Thursday evening. The Terrapins dropped the first game of the double header 8-6 to #24 Notre Dame, while winning the nightcap, 2-1, in walk-off fashion against BYU in nine innings. With the split, the Terps move to 7-5 on the season.
Lindsey Schmeiser and Mandy Gardner combined for four hits and seven RBIs over the course of the two games, helping to propel the Terps. Gardner knocked in five of Maryland's six runs, including a three-run home run, in the bout against Notre Dame.
Maryland returns to action in the second day of the Mary Nutter Classic, tomorrow at 11:30 p.m. (EST) with a match-up against Nevada.
Game One
Mandy Gardner and the Terps would strike first with a two RBI single to left that scored Erin Pronobis and Hannah Dewey. The Irish would respond in the bottom of the first as the first seven Notre Dame batters singled. Maryland and Notre Dame combined for seven runs in the first inning of an offensive clinic as Notre Dame took a 5-2 lead.
Notre Dame tacked on one in the second keeping the score 6-2, until the top of the fifth inning when Pronobis reached on an error and Corey Schwartz walked to bring up Gardner. Gardner came up clutch, increasing her team leading RBI total to 15 with a dinger to right. Gardner's second home run of the year cut the deficit to one.
Katey Haus would give Notre Dame some breathing room in the bottom of the sixth with a two-out, two RBI bloop single to right to make it an 8-5 ballgame.
Schwartz would notch her team's first triple of the season to bring in Hannah Dewey, but the Terrapins would ultimately fall 8-6.
Gardner went 2-for-3 with five RBIs, while Dewey went 2-for-3 from the batter's box.
Game Two
BYU jumped on top in the first inning after a sac fly to right scored Gordy Bravo. Maryland would respond as walks by Pronobis and Dewey combined with a BYU error, loaded the bases for Maryland's RBI leader Mandy Gardner. Gardner hit a sharp grounder to second, scoring Pronobis and tying the game at one.
The score remained tied at one for the next seven innings as a pitchers duel emerged. The combination of Hannah Dewey and Kaitlyn Schmeiser combined for nine innings pitched, one run allowed, and six strikeouts. Dewey started the game going three and 1/3 innings, yielding only one run and striking out one. Kaitlyn Schmeiser pitched the remaining five and 2/3 innings, keeping the opponent scoreless and striking out five.
In extra innings, both teams had opportunities in the eighth with bases loaded and no outs but great pitching and defense from both sides silenced the opposing offense.
Maryland would break through in the ninth however, as a Shannon Bustillos sacrifice bunt would move Juli Strange and Bridget Hawvermale over to second and third. Lindsey Schmeiser came up with bases loaded and two outs and delivered with a line drive shot to the left-center gap to score Strange, giving Maryland the 2-1 victory.
-Maryland-
