FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Mark Albanese, Assistant Sports Information Director, 630-637-5302

Tucson, Ariz. (Mar. 23, 2009)-- For the third time in the last four days, the North Central College softball team split a pair of games; cruising by Calvin College 11-5, thanks to a six-run fifth inning before falling 9-1 to nationally-ranked Luther College (Iowa) in the late game at the Tucson Invitational Games.

Against Calvin, North Central got on the board first with Holly Roadruck hitting a base hit through the left side to score Sammie Bloomfield and Laura Whitfield in the bottom of the first inning. Bloomfield reached base on an infield single while Whitfield reached on a ground-rule double.

The Knights would counter in the third inning, with Kim Vanden Akker scoring off a Brittany Moriarity single after VandenAkk reached base on an error. North Central would have another run cross the plate in the bottom of the second while Calvin generated another run in the top of the third.

Trailing 3-2 with two outs in the fifth, Calvin's Loren Scarbroug drove in a run while Mallissa VanRooyen followed that up with a double to drive in two more runs before being thrown out at third base, ending the inning after the Knights took a 5-3 advantage.

In the bottom of the fifth, North Central exploited three Calvin errors to rack up six unearned runs on five hits. Whitfield reached base on a throwing error by the second baseman, keeping the inning alive with two outs. The Cardinals made the Knights pay as the next batter Roadruck blasted a double, driving in a run. Laura Constantine would hit a two-RBI single later in the inning upping the Cardinal lead to 9-5.

The Cardinals would tack on two more insurance runs in the sixth inning, bumping the final score to 11-5.

Roadruck (1-2) recorded her first win of the season in the circle after pitching all seven innings, allowing no walks and striking out one. Her counterpart Amada Johnson took the loss, allowing six runs in four and two-thirds innings before getting the hook.

Whitfield finished the game three-for-four at the plate while Roadruck helped her cause by driving in three runs, also finishing the game three-for-four.

Against sixth-ranked Luther (6-1), North Central scored the game's first run in the bottom of the first before the bats went quiet as the Norse rattled off nine unanswered runs to secure the win.

Mary Caron hit a lead-off double in the bottom of the first while Katie Pappa singled in the next at-bat to drive in Caron for what turned out as the team's only offensive production.

Luther would get on the board in the third inning, after Kayla Denner led off the inning with a triple. Anna Simonson would single to drive in the tying run as the Norse pounded out five hits in the inning, scoring four runs. The Norse would add an additional run in the fourth after a leadoff single by Abigail Christian while adding two more runs in both the fifth and seventh innings.

BreAnn Van Deer picked up the win for Luther, pitching a complete game after fanning seven batters and walking none. Brianna Nicholson (2-1) suffered her first defeat of the year, allowing seven runs, all earned in four and two-thirds innings.

Pappa highlighted the Cardinal offensive attack, accounting for three of the team's five hits as she finished the game a perfect three-for-three at the plate.

North Central (3-3) returns to the diamond tomorrow for a pair of afternoon games, facing Taylor University in game one at 1 p.m. (Mountain) before closing the day against Saint Olaf College (Minn.) at 5 p.m. (Mountain).