Clermont, FL, 3/25/2022 – The Blue Jay softball team got their spring break trip to Clermont, Florida started on the right foot. A huge eight run fifth inning rally carried the Jays to their first win of the season behind timely hitting and a great relief appearance by Erin Carr (Woodlawn, Il / Christ Our Rock Lutheran) to lead the Jays to a 12-10 victory over the Lawrence University Vikings. The win improved the Blue Jays record to 1-6.
The Vikings would jump out to a 1-0 lead in the top of the first thanks to an error and a hit. The Blue Jays would respond as sophomore Emily Esquivel (San Diego, Ca. / Eastlake) led off the game for the Jays with a single. Laney Rosson (Columbia, Mo. / Battle) would reach first on an error by the third baseman while Esquivel would advance to third with no one out. Raigan Mckee (Oologah, OK / Oologah) would score Esquivel on a sacrifice fly to right field to tie the game 1-1 after one full inning.
The Vikings would score four runs on four hits including a three-run home run to take a 5-1 lead in the top of the second inning. The Blue Jays would respond in the bottom of the third inning scoring three runs on two hits and two Viking Errors. The big hits in the inning were a Rosson RBI double, a Mckee RBI single and a Kasey Ginder (Kirkwood, Mo. / Kirkwood) RBI grounder to cut the Viking lead to 5-4 through three innings.
The Vikings would lead off the fourth inning with a walk and a two-run home run to increase their lead to 7-4 and chase the Blue Jays starter Haley Miller (O'Fallon, MO / Liberty) who worked three innings giving up seven runs, six earned, on five hits. She would strikeout two while walking four. In would come Carr to try to keep the Jays in the game. A walk and an error put runners on second and third and nobody out. Carr would manage to limit the Vikings to just three runs on four hits the rest of the way but the Jays would trail 10-4 heading into the fifth inning.
The bottom of the fifth inning would see the Blue Jays erupt for eight runs on five hits, three walks and one Viking error. Rosson singled with one out and Mckee walked. It didn't look good for the Jays as the next batter struck out for the second out. Ginder would strike for a two run RBI double to score Rosson and Mckee, cutting the Viking lead to 10-6. This was the first of seven straight batters to reach base for the Blue Jays all with two out. Later in the inning Abbey Jaspering (Wright City, Mo. / Wright City) would deliver a bases loaded two RBI pinch hit single to close the gap to 10-8. Esquivel would deliver an RBI single with the bases loaded to get the Jays to within one at 10-9 while leaving the bases loaded for Rosson. She would deliver the biggest blow of the game as she cleared the bases with a three RBI double to give the Blue Jays their first lead of the game.
Carr would shut out the Vikings the rest of the way to record her first win of her season (1-3) as the Jays would close out the Vikings 12-10.
Rosson would star for the Blue Jays going 3-3 with four RBI's including the game winning double. Esquivel would go 2-3 with two runs scored and an RBI. Ginder would drive home three runs for the Jays.
The Blue Jays will look to build on the momentum from the comeback win later on Friday when they will take on the University of Miami at Hamilton (OH) in game two of their spring break trip.
