The six Fort Lewis College senior softball players couldn’t have asked for a nicer day to celebrate senior day, but one more win would have been icing on the cake.
Fort Lewis (15-32, 12-22 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference) came back to win game one of Sunday’s doubleheader with Adams State 6-3, but lost the last game of the season at Aspen Field 4-3.
Olivia Goldberg gave up three first-inning runs, but shut the door on the Grizzlies after that as she notched her second win of the season. Lauren Caldwell led the Skyhawks’ offense going 3-for-3 with a run scored and a run batted in.
FLC got a run back in the bottom of the first when freshman slugger Angelique Elemen drilled a ground-rule double to right field to score Adriana Rosthenhausler.
The Skyhawks’ bats went silent until a fifth-inning rally changed the game. FLC scored five runs in the fifth inning capped off by Mandy Owens’ two-run double that gave the home team a 6-3 lead.
Goldberg did the rest in the circle. She gave up 10 hits, struck out two and walked none in the win.
Game 2 started well for FLC with ace Victoria Johnson sailing through the Adams State (19-29, 17-19 RMAC) order without a threat.Mandy Owens’ third-inning home run gave the Skyhawks the lead and a Caldwell double an inning later made it 2-0.
Trailing 3-1 in the final at-bat, the Grizzlies got the clutch hit they were looking for when catcher Marissa Harmon belted a three-run blast that won the game for Adams State.
It was the last day of softball in a Fort Lewis uniform for seniors Laura Ashe, Missy Fundora, Victoria Johnson, Nikki Klepfer, Kiley Raica and Jeovanna Rios.
This is a special senior class for the Skyhawks as Fundora leaves FLC as the all-time hits leader (219) and Johnson holds the school record for wins (39).
