THREE RIVERS – Visiting Dowagiac may have gotten off to a slow start, but the Chieftains finished with a flurry to sweep Three Rivers in Wolverine Conference softball Friday night.

Dowagiac came out a bit flat, but managed to take a 5-0 win over the Wildcats in the opening game.

Three Rivers came out and scored four runs in the top of the first in the second game, but the Chieftains responded by scoring in every inning it batted on its way to an 8-4 victory and a sweep.

“I was a little worried about how we would come out tonight after two big wins versus Edwardsburg on Wednesday,” Dowagiac coach Mike Behnke said. “We came out very flat in the first game and wasting scoring opportunity after scoring opportunity. The game really wasn’t as close as 5-0.

“We got very good pitching from Tara (Sova) and made no errors for the first time in a game this year, so that was a positive,” he added.

Sova scattered seven hits with four strikeouts and just one walk.

The Chieftains finished with six hits, including a triple by Katie Lorenz and Devon Ownby. Lorenz, Ownby, Sierra Herter and Kiele Belew all drove in runs.

In the second game after falling behind 4-0 in the top half of the first, Lorenz homered in the bottom half of the frame to give the Chieftains some life.

“We had a bad first inning in the second game and then Miranda (East) settled down and pitched well,” Behnke said. “I told the girls not to worry and take it one at bat at a time. Katie helped our confidence by leading off with a homerun and we then scored in every inning after that to show a little character to come back from four runs down in the first.”
East allowed two earned runs on six hits with seven strikeouts and just one walk.
Dowagiac banged out 12 hits.

Lorenz was 4-for-4 with an RBI. Torie Lowe, who hit four homeruns in the doubleheader against Edwardsburg, was also 4-for-4 with a homerun and three RBIs.

Sova was 3-for-3 with a double and an RBI.

First game
Dowagiac 010 003 0 – 5 6 0
Three Rivers 000 000 0 – 0 7 1
Tara Sova (W, 3-2) and Torie Lowe
Amy Newell (L) and Katie Larsh
2B: Heather Newell (TR)
3B: Katie Lorenz (D), Devon Ownby (D)

Second game
Three Rivers 400 000 0 – 4 6 0
Dowagiac 112 112 x – 8 12 2
Miranda East (W, 3-2) and Torie Lowe
Amy Newell (L) and Katie Larsh
2B: Tara Sova (D)
HR: Katie Lorenz (D), Lowe (D)
Varsity record: Dowagiac 6-2, 2-2 Wolverine