JOLIET, ILL. - Friday's Region 4 softball doubleheader between Madison College and Joliet Junior College resulted in a split after Madison College followed two home runs to a 4-2 win in the opener and the host Wolves, who are ranked #5 in the NJCAA Division III Poll, rolled to a 12-4 run-ruled victory in six innings in the finale. Raegen Schwarz and Cathryn Zegadlo hit homers in the first game, while Cassie Coffey added another in the loss. With the results, the all-time series now stands at 42-17 in favor of the Pack.

Game #1: Madison College 4, #5 Joliet Junior College 2

Madison College got the bats going early with a three-run top of the first inning. With Sadie Svendsen on with a leadoff walk, sophomore catcher Hayden Schabel ripped a double to left with two outs to drive her in for a 1-0 lead. Then second year centerfielder Raegen Schwarz crushed a two-run home run to left for a 3-0 advantage. It was her second homer of the season and fourth of her career.



Joliet Junior College answered with a run in the home half to cut the differential to two runs, where it stayed until the fourth inning. Freshman second baseman Cathryn Zegadlo showed the pop in her bat with a leadoff roundtripper to make it 4-1. The solo home run is the first collegiate homer for the Cottage Grove, Wisconsin, native.

Despite a return solo home run by JJC to start the home half of the fourth, pitcher Lauryn Etienne (4-1) earned the win with seven strong innings and eight strikeouts. She allowed two runs, with only one being earned, on four hits and a walk.

Rightfielder Cassie Coffey was the only WolfPack batter with more than one hit, going 2 for 4 while five others delivered with a single base knock. Schwarz, a returning all-region selection from last season, was 1 for 2 with a hit and a walk, resulting in two runs batted in and a run scored. Both Schabel and Zegadlo had a hit, a run batted in, and a run scored.

Game #2: #5 Joliet Junior College 12, Madison College 4 (6 innings)

The day's second game also started with a bang as freshman Cassie Coffey blasted a two-out solo home run in the top of the first for her second of the season, tying her for the team lead. Joliet Junior College (22-7) answered back with a run on a RBI-double in the home half for a 1-1 score.

In the second, sophomore second baseman Shelby Brooks lined a single up the middle two batters after Haleigh Benish reached on an error, driving in another run with two outs. The Wolves responded with two home runs in the bottom of the second against starter Gretta Lewis to jump ahead 4-2. 

The WolfPack continued to battled and in the fourth, Brooks continued her productive game with a run-scoring double that scored Torin Slaughter. Left fielder Kelsey Meverden blooped a single over the second baseman to plate pinch runner Jeneya Marquez Perez and tie the game at 4-4.

The rest of the game belonged to JJC, who put up four runs in their half of the fourth inning after the WolfPack brought in new pitcher, Sophie Golembiewski. The runs runs came on four hits and a walk. In the sixth inning, the Wolves generated five consecutive hits and eventually scored four more runs to end the game via run-rule. 

The top three batters in the WolfPack lineup combined for six hits, starting with a 2 for 4 effort by Brooks. The native of Plover, Wisconsin, drove in two runs. Meverden, who saw a ten-game hitting streak come to an end in the first game of the day, drove in one run on two hits. And Coffey finished 2 for 4 with a run and a RBI as she produced her eighth game in the 11 played with multiple hits.

Lewis pitched three innings and was tagged for four runs, two were earned, on four hits and two walks. She struck out one before Golembiewski (2-3) took over for 2.1 innings, the resulted in eight earned runs, ten hits, and two walks with one K.

Up Next: 

Madison College (10-8) was scheduled to play at in-state rival Milwaukee Area Technical College on Tuesday, April 7; however, that doubleheader is being moved to Thursday, April 9 and will be hosted at Robert D. Goodman Softball Field. Before that, the WolfPack will play two games at Sauk Valley Community College (3-15) on Wednesday, April 8 as a makeup from a rainout on the previous Saturday. Madison College is 19-5 all-time against the Skyhawks. First pitch of the doubleheader in Dixon, Illinois, is set for 3:00 p.m., with live video and stats available via the GameChanger app.

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