Senior Dana LaCoste (shown) and classmates Liz Christensen, Amanda Smith and Jena Suffel made their final appearances for Wilmington College Wednesday.
Wilmington College could not get the big hits at the moments, and Wittenberg did as the Tigers ended the Quakers' season with a pair of defeats at the WC Softball Complex Wednesday afternoon.
The 6-2, 5-0 losses end Wilmington’s spring campaign at 7-27 while Wittenberg closes out at 18-20.
The day provided something of a seasonal microcosm for Wilmington as big innings and defensive breakdowns worked against the Quakers. In the opener, Wittenberg broke open a scoreless battle with four runs in the top of the third. In the nightcap, the Tigers scored a pair of unearned runs to build what proved to be an insurmountable lead.
“In both games we beat ourselves in one inning,” Wilmington head coach Beth Floyd said. “They hurt us with their small-ball game in the opener, and errors hurt us in game two.”
Holly Sheets (Richwood/North Union) had two of Wilmington’s six hits in the opener. The freshman first baseman also drove in a run.
In game two, Wilmington out-hit Wittenberg, 7-6. Caitlin Baker (Stow/Stow-Munroe Falls) and Priscilla Strayer (Leesburg/Miami Trace) had two hits each. Junior center fielder Cory Sheets (Wanamaker, Ind./Franklin Central) went 2-for-6 to finish the season with a .396 batting average.
The games marked the final appearances of Wilmington seniors Liz Christensen (Lakewood/St. Joseph Academy), Dana LaCoste (Peebles), Amanda Smith (Delaware/Hayes) and Jena Suffel (Bryan/Fairview).
“I am very proud of our seniors. They’ve been through some ups and downs, but they always stayed motivated and kept a good, positive attitude,” Floyd said.