Mustangs, Pride trade shutouts

DUBUQUE, Iowa- The Mount Mercy softball team went on the road to face Clarke in a Heart of America Athletic Conference doubleheader Tuesday night. The Mustangs took game one, 10-0, in five innings before the Pride won the nightcap, 4-0, at Veterans Park.

Every Mustang tallied a hit in the opener, giving Jayna Witzany more than enough run support for her 18th win of the season. Back-to-back two-out doubles from Mikayla Fritz and Natalie Tecklenburg put Mount Mercy on the board in the second inning, 2-0. The Mustang bats stayed hot in the third with four straight singles followed by an Allie Poston sacrifice fly that made it 4-0. Mount Mercy put up a six-spot in the fourth, highlighted by Jade Sharp and Michelle Mack doubles, to take a 10-0 lead. Witzany (18-3) threw a one-hitter, striking out 10 and walking none in the process. Keily Ulatowski, Mack, Fritz, and Tecklenburg recorded two hits apiece, with Mack driving in a team-best three runs. Sharp and Tecklenburg added two RBIs respectively while Rylee Goodfellow and Fritz scored two runs each. 

Clarke (10-34, 4-28 Heart) flipped the script in game two, giving Mount Mercy a taste of their own medicine. The Pride's starter, Malarie Huseman, went the distance and no-hit the Mustangs, the first time all season Mount Mercy was held hitless. Kalli Minger (11-9) pitched the complete game for the Mustangs, giving up one earned run on 10 hits and three walks while striking out eight. Despite drawing seven walks and a hit-by-pitch, Mount Mercy couldn't push a run across the plate. The Mustangs had runners in scoring position three times but left nine runners on base. Clarke capitalized on Mount Mercy's three errors, scoring a run in the second and fifth innings before adding a pair of insurance runs in the sixth.

Mount Mercy (30-15, 23-7 Heart) looks to get back in the win column this weekend as their road streak continues with two Heart doubleheaders. The Mustangs travel to Oskaloosa on Saturday to face William Penn (21-19, 14-12 Heart) at 1:00 pm. Sunday features the top two teams in the North Division as Mount Mercy heads to Des Moines for a showdown against 11th-ranked Grand View (39-5, 28-2 Heart) in their regular-season finale at 1:00 pm.