By MIKE MORRISON & ERIKA PICKLES

NILES — It was a sunny,but cold and brisk day on the diamond of Carol Thurston Memorial Field for Brandywine’s non-conference double header against visiting Lawton Thursday afternoon.

In spite of the late fall like conditions, sophomore pitcher Delani Nelson had the curing remedy, as she fired up her inside fastball and hit her catcher’s target to keep Lawton’s bats frozen.

Her consistency help led Brandywine (2-2) to a sweep 8-1 and 10-0.
This was Brandywine’s first game in nearly two weeks as weather caused several of their scheduled games to be cancelled.

The way the Bobcats pitched and hit the ball showed that the time off didn’t faze them much. 

In the first game Brandywine scored early with Madison Bailey driving in Haliee Ebersol on a single in the first. In the third, the Bobcats added three more runs thanks to the solid hitting and base running of Bailey, Nicole Sachman and Alysa Adamczyk.

Brandywine would seal the deal with three more insurance runs in the sixth. Nelson was able to strike out 16 Blue Devils and not allow a walk.

In the second game, Nelson went 3-for-3 at the plate, with a triple and two RBI while pitching a no-hitter in a game that ended with the mercy rule in the fifth inning by striking out 12 more batters, and again not allowing a walk.

Kennedy Byrd added three hits of her own while Malikkah Abdullah and Adamczyk added a couple of hits a scored.
Nelson’s key to success was all about preparation.

“I just had a really good warm-up with my catcher (Adamczyk),” Nelson said. “We didn’t have to move the glove around a whole lot and I was just consistently hitting my spots. It wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be (because of the weather).”

Veteran Bobcat coach Jim Myers agrees the Nelson’s pitching was the real fire starter the team needed to get on track and keep the pressure on.

“She pitched well and did a good job keeping them off balance,” he said. “Our defense was pretty solid and the biggest thing was we were able to put the bat on the ball today which is something we didn’t do our first two games this season.”

Brandywine is back in action Tuesday to start their BCS Athletic Conference schedule against Berrien Springs.

Brandywine baseball

The Brandywine varsity baseball team put on a dominant home performance against Lawton Thursday night.

In game one, the Bobcats won 13-3, after only five innings and topped off the evening with a 12-2 victory in game two after just four innings.

Head coach Dave Sidenbender was more than impressed with his team’s overall performance.

“It was great to get out and play some competitive baseball,” he said. “Our approach at the plate was good and we also did a great job throwing strikes.”

Ty Mickiewicz was the winning pitcher in the first game for Brandywine and Brock Prenkert took game two at the mound.

Both teams came together for a great cause after the contest as the evening also featured the annual Heart Game, a fundraising event which raises money for the American Heart Association. Sidenbender explained that his team relies on the sales of T-shirts, socks and bands.

“This is our fourth year doing it and once again, we raised over $1,000,” he said.
Brandywine, now 6-2 overall, will host Berrien Springs at 4:15 p.m. Tuesday.