- Sophomore Courtney Donahue throws third consecutive no-hitter in 17-0 win in the opener
- Freshman Hilary Wilson drives in four runs in first game
- Freshman Josie McCuddin drives in three runs in 7-4 win in the second game
Sophomore Courtney Donahue of Marshfield, Wis., pitched her third consecutive no-hitter and her fourth no-hitter in her past five outings as the DMACC softball team
swept a doubleheader from Ellsworth Community College (ECC) April 17 at Iowa Falls.
Donahue's no-hitter came in a 17-0 win in the first game and she got support from freshman Hilary Wilson of Solon who drove in four runs. Freshman Josie McCuddin of Truro had three RBIs in DMACC's 7-4 win in the second game.
Donahue went just five innings as the game was called because of the mercy rule at that point. She struck out 12 and did not issue a walk in improving to 17-2 for the season.
DMACC took a 1-0 lead in the first inning, pushed its advantage to 9-0 with eight runs in the second and closed out the win with four runs in the third, one in the fourth and three in the fifth.
The Bears collected 17 hits in the win including three by Wilson and two each from McCuddin, sophomores Campbell Kelley of Rock Island, Ill., and Hannah Ironside of Swisher and freshmen Breanna Caffery of Bettendorf, Delaney Milanowski of Spring Green, Wis., and Keaton Frere of Andalusia, Ill. Milanowski had a pair of doubles and Wilson, Caffery, McCuddin and Frere had one double apiece. Caffery recorded a triple.
In addition to Wilson's four RBIs, Caffery and Milanowski had three RBIs apiece and McCuddin and Frere drove in two runs apiece.
Caffery got DMACC on the board in the first when she singled, got to third on a pair of groundouts and scored on Wilson's base hit. Caffery had a bases-loaded triple during the Bears' eight-run rally in the second, Wilson had a two-run double in the inning, Kelley had an RBI single and Milanowski drove in two runs with a double.
Wilson single home a run in the fourth, McCuddin drove in two runs with a double and Milanowski got another run home with a sacrifice fly as the Bears opened up a 13-0 advantage. DMACC made it 15-0 game on a run-scoring single by Ironside in the fifth and Frere drove in the Bears' final two runs.
Sophomores Kelsey Palmer of Cedar Rapids and Elle Nelson of Grimes had two hits apiece in DMACC's win in the second game and McCuddin drove in three of the Bears' seven runs.
DMACC trailed 2-0 after the first inning, tied it with two runs in the second and then fell behind 3-2 when ECC scored in the bottom of the third. DMACC took the lead for good with four runs in the fifth and led 6-4 after ECC scored in the bottom of the inning. The Bears closed it out with a run in the top of the sixth.
Milanowski doubled and scored on a single by Ironside in the second and Ironside scored what was then the tying run on a wild pitch later in the inning. McCuddin singled in two runs in the fifth, Nelson also had a run-scoring base hit and freshman Kyleia Salyars of Muscatine got a run home on a sacrifice fly. McCuddin's bases-loaded walk accounted for DMACC's run in the sixth.
Freshman Macy Blomgren of Waukee pitched the first three innings for DMACC, allowing three runs on three hits with five strikeouts and two walks. Sophomore Lauryn Foudree of West Des Moines went the last four innings and improved to 4-2 with the win. She allowed one run on six hits and struck out two batters.
The DMACC softball team, ranked 10th in the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division II poll, will play a doubleheader against Iowa Lakes Community College (ILCC) April 20 and will face Northeast (Neb.) Community College (NECC) in a doubleheader April 21. All four games will be played at the DMACC softball diamond.