Contact: Sam Fretto, Athletics Communication Graduate Assistant, sjfretto@noctrl.edu

CLERMONT, Fla. (Mar. 12, 2026) - The North Central College softball team continued its action in Clermont, Florida Thursday morning with a 4-2 win over Roger Williams University before falling to William Peace University 6-3 in a late fifth-inning push by the Pacers.

Cardinal starter Sam Schilf faced the minimum batters in the first inning, not allowing the ball out of the infield. Gwen Schouse led off the bottom half of the frame with a single. She moved up 60 feet on a Hawks' error, but North Central could not push a run across.

After another scoreless inning from Schilf, Shouse again led off with a single. She stole second base to move into scoring position. Gracie Vlach advanced Shouse to third on a productive groundout. Plating the game's first run, Nicole Stone used a sacrifice fly to score Shouse, giving the Cardinals a 1-0 advantage after three innings.

Schilf worked around a leadoff single and an error to keep Roger Williams off the scoreboard in the fourth. The Hawks loaded the bases in the top of the fifth thanks to a pair of singles and a North Central error. A two-run single put Roger Williams in front, 2-1, and forced a pitching change. Juliana Maude came in and struck out the next two batters to limit the damage.

Kayla Lindberg singled on a full count to put the tying run on base. Vlach launched a clutch two-out triple to even the game at 2-2. On the very next pitch, Stone delivered the go-ahead run with an RBI single up the middle. Following a Hawks pitching change, Hailey Morsovillo and Lauren Bowmar drew walks to load the bases. A hit by pitch from Kayla Crabtree extended the Cardinal lead to two, 4-2, as Reese Johnson scored from third after pinch running for Stone. 

Maude picked up where she left off, allowing just one hit and striking out two batters in the top of the sixth before a 1-2-3 seventh to seal the victory.

Shouse led all batters with three hits while Stone drove in two runs on the day. Schilf threw 4.1 innings with one strikeout and two runs allowed. Maude earned her third win of the season, pitching 2.2 innings, allowing no runs with four punchouts in the circle. 

After a scoreless first inning against William Peace, Morsovillo was walked to kick off the second inning. Bowmar bunted to the third baseman and reached on an error as the Pacers overthrew it on the force out at second. Vianca Juarez checked in to pinch run for Morsovillo just before a wild pitch advanced runners to third and second. Creeth hit a blooper to second that gave Juarez enough time to score as Bowmar advanced to third but was left stranded.

With the momentum still in favor of the Cardinals after a 1-2-3 defensive second inning, Shouse hit a single out to left field and advanced to third on an error to be in scoring position with Vlach in the batter's box. Vlach hit a grounder to shortstop as Shouse came across home for the 2-0 lead. William Peace came back to score one in the bottom of the third. 

The Pacers managed to put together a strong series in the bottom of the fifth scoring three runs to take 4-2 lead into the sixth inning.

Stone opened the top of the sixth with an infield single to the shortstop. Morsovillo cracked a line drive out to right field to advance Stone to third. With runners on the corners, Bowmar hit a sacrifice fly out to right field, bringing in Stone to cut the lead down to one at 4-3. 

In the bottom of the sixth with two outs on the board, William Peace scored two runners on a fly ball to right field to give the Pacers a 6-3 advantage. A walk and a hit-by-pitch put the Cardinals in a risky situation with bases loaded, but Maude caught William Peace's batter looking for the third out.

Hoping to mount the comeback at the top of the seventh, North Central put two runners on base via walks to start the final half inning but was unable to convert them into runs as the Cardinals fell 6-3 in game two.

Maude pitched all six innings and recorded nine strikeouts while allowing six runs on six hits. Shouse went 2-for-4 at the plate to lead North Central's offense while Creeth and Vlach each drove in one run for the Cardinals.

North Central is back at Hancock Park in Clermont, Florida tomorrow with the first game against Heidelberg University set for 10 a.m. ET, followed by a 2:45 p.m. ET game against Curry College.