On Thursday, the Maroons hosted two games against Wheaton College looking to build on their momentum, and get their record back to .500 after winning two games earlier in the week against North Park.
In the first game, after jumping out to a lead with a three-run third inning, the team held off a persistent Thunder squad until the final inning of the game, which the Maroons entered holding onto a precarious 4–3 lead. However, the visiting team managed to complete the comeback by scoring two in the top half, and eventually held on to eke out the victory by a score of 5–4.
The South Siders came back with some fire to start the second game, getting out ahead to a four-run lead by the third inning. Yet once again, Wheaton was able to answer the call, coming from behind and scoring three runs in the seventh to earn a 6–4 win. The Maroons’ record dropped to 14–18 for the year with their two losses on the day.
“Wheaton was a very persistent opponent who refused to allow a run deficit to discourage them at any point in the double header,” said first-year first baseman Alyssa Stolmack.
“If anything, we grew very comfortable with the leads we established, so we took our foot off the gas pedal and allowed them to come back and take over the pace and outcome of the game.”
Fourth-year Tabbetha Bohac had a similar assessment of the day.
“We started both games off strong but weren’t able to finish in the end. The major takeaway would be to play all seven innings with the same intensity.”
Bohac is the lone returning fourth-year for the young squad. In fact, Bohad was one of only two fourth-years on this season’s squad, along with Katharine Hedlund, who joined the team just this year for her first go -around as a Maroon softball player. Looking to the future, half of the Maroons 14 players were underclassmen, a group of seven that will surely bring good fortune to the program over the course of the next several years.
Despite the losses, the Maroons got a strong offensive performance from third-year Kathleen Kohm, who provided four hits and two RBI for the day. From the bump, the Maroons were bolstered by complete game outings from pitchers third-year Jordan Poole and first-year Molly Moran. It was also Senior Day for the Maroons, as the team honored Bohac and fellow fourth-year Katharine Hedlund.
“My teammates were amazing and made my Senior Day a great one,” said Bohac. “It was truly humbling to see how supportive our friends and families were.”
When asked what she would be focusing on in her last games at Chicago, Bohac said, “Having fun, playing hard and always remembering that it’s a great day to be a Maroon.”
Looking ahead, the softball team will travel to play their last two games of the season against Elmhurst. It will be a tough doubleheader as the Blue Jays stand at a solid 19–15 on the year. The South Siders will be looking to end the season on a high note.
