Washington softball sweeps Mt. Pleasant

MT. PLEASANT — Both games in Washington’s sweep of Mt. Pleasant on the softball diamonds Thursday seemed similar. That is except for a two-hour weather delay crunched between the early innings of the first game.

The delay in Game 1 was the separator in a pair of Demon victories. Washington put up a crooked number in the first inning of both games, and ended each contest in five innings, winning 11-1 and 18-2.

The Demons scored four runs in the first frame of the opener and one in the second before lightning stopped the contest at 5-0. When the game picked up, the Demons kept marching on.

Washington’s Ava Turner was lethal from the leadoff spot, going 4-for-4 with an RBI. Kellie Dallmeyer went 2-for-3 with two RBIs, and Isabella Salazar was 1-for-3 with a double and two knocked in. Salazar held Mt. Pleasant to just one earned run over five innings and struck out five Panthers.

“It’s never fun to sit for that long, but you just try stay loose,” said Washington head coach Ben Obermann. "The girls did a good job of not letting that layoff affect us.“

Mt. Pleasant’s Grace Kelley went 1-for-2 with an RBI in Game 1. Ella McNamee was 1-for-2 with a double, the Panthers’ only extra-base hit. Bethany Drury took the loss in the circle.

In Game 2, the Demons once again had the runs flowing early with a five-run first inning. Mt. Pleasant answered with two in their half of the opening frame, but the Demons scored the next 13.

“We didn’t play very well at times, but I also saw some maturity,” said Mt. Pleasant head coach Mike Beason. “It’s a process.”

Dallmeyer went 5-for-5 with two triples and five RBIs in Game 2. Halle Cuddeback added to the Demons’ success with a 4-for-4 night and three RBIs and picked up the win in the circle. Cameron Malichky knocked in three, and Emy Wenger was 2-for-3 with two doubles and two RBIs.

Mt. Pleasant was led by Jersey Beachy in Game 2. She went 2-for-2 with a double. Grace Kelley was 1-for-2 with a triple and an RBI. Madison Helling knocked in one run and started the game in the circle, picking up a loss.

Washington moved to 7-3 in conference play, just one game back of Fairfield and Burlington, who share the lead at 8-2. Mt. Pleasant is 0-10 in the SEC.

On Monday night, Washington will hit the road to play at Fort Madison, which is 2-6 in SEC play. Mt. Pleasant will host Keokuk (3-5).