BROOKINGS – Freshman Paige Gerdes hit a grand slam – her first career home run – in the first inning and Ali Herdliska also went deep as South Dakota State beat Omaha 8-4 to open a three-game Summit League softball series Friday afternoon at Jackrabbit St
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BROOKINGS – Freshman Paige Gerdes hit a grand slam – her first career home run – in the first inning and Ali Herdliska also went deep as South Dakota State beat Omaha 8-4 to open a three-game Summit League softball series Friday afternoon at Jackrabbit Stadium.
Ashlyn Bender (9-10) pitched 6 1/3 innings, giving up four runs on eight hits with three strikeouts and two walks, to earn the win – her third in as many starts.
Julia Andersen and Abbey Murphy got the bottom of the first inning going with back-to-back one-out singles, and Herdliska walked to load the bases. Mallory McQuistan reached on a fielder’s choice as Andersen was thrown out at home.
Gerdes stepped up next and lined a 1-0 pitch off the scoreboard in left field to make it 4-0.
In the third, Herdliska drew a leadoff walk and advanced on McQuistan’s sacrifice bunt before Gerdes reached on an error.
Danielle Steffo’s RBI single made it 5-0. After Christian McKone walked, Yanney Ponce drove in Gerdes with a groundout to push the margin to 6-0.
The Mavericks got on the board in the top of the fourth after Emily Klosterman hit into a fielder’s choice to plate Kelly Pattison, who led off the frame with a single.
In the bottom of the fourth, Murphy was hit by a pitch and Herdliska followed with a two-run homer, driving a 2-2 pitch over the fence in right.
She is now third on the Jackrabbits’ career home runs list with 21.
UNO pulled within 8-2 on Vicky Kinney’s solo homer to open the sixth.
Pinch-hitter Kylie Schwarting, Hailey Bartz and Lizzie Noble singled to get the seventh going.
Bender struck out Lia Mancuso, before giving way to Madison Hope. Hope struck out Pattison but Kinney came through with a two-run single to cut the deficit to 8-4.
Hope sat down Nicole Warren on strikes to end the game.
Gerdes and Anderson both finished with two hits. Herdliska was 1-for-2 with a pair of walks and three runs scored.
For Omaha, Kinney was 3-for-4 with three RBIs. Bartz went 2-for-3.
Abbie Clark, the first of three Maverick pitchers, gave up four runs on four hits with a strikeout and a walk in just 1 2/3 innings of action.
