Eastern Wayne Today

Wayne State University's softball team faced a challenging doubleheader against Saginaw Valley State University on Saturday. The visiting Cardinals secured victories in both games, defeating the Warriors 8-1 in the first game and 5-3 in the second.

In the opening game, SVSU took an early lead with Alyssa Muench's RBI single. They added two more runs in the fourth inning due to hits and a throwing error, followed by Katelyn Pnacek's double. Paige Kolinski extended their advantage with a two-run homer in the fifth inning. The Cardinals scored three additional runs in the sixth, capitalizing on walks and a fielding error by Wayne State.

The Warriors managed to score once in the sixth inning when Kiley Lewandowski doubled and later crossed home plate thanks to a single from Sasha Buckberger.

Freshman Sydney Long started for Wayne State, allowing five earned runs over 4.1 innings, while Emily Depew pitched six innings for SVSU, limiting Wayne State to one earned run.

Lewandowski led Wayne State with three hits, while Muench excelled for SVSU with three hits of her own.

In game two, Saginaw Valley took an early lead again through Muench's sacrifice fly. Lewandowski tied it up with her first home run as a Warrior. However, Muench responded with a three-run homer to put SVSU ahead again. Despite efforts from WSU players like Lewandowski and Maddie Hool who scored crucial runs, they couldn't close the gap entirely.

Senior Alexis Bonk pitched all seven innings for WSU but allowed five earned runs. Muench claimed victory on behalf of SVSU after pitching nearly five innings before Aalana Kimble secured the save by restricting WSU further.

Mya Purdy shone for SVSU with four hits and Muench contributed significantly with four RBIs.

Wayne State is set to continue their season on Sunday against Davenport and then Ferris State on Tuesday before returning home to face Grand Valley State next Wednesday.