Courtesy of Midland Athletics
FREMONT, Neb. – Back home from a weeklong trip to Florida, No. 21 Midland University opened Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) play on Friday with a doubleheader against Morningside University. The Mustangs won a back-and-forth opener, 8-7, before the Warriors stormed back to take the second game, 9-1, in five innings. The games were moved up to an 11:30 a.m. start due to forecasted rain later in the day.
GAME ONE: Morningside 8, Midland 7
Midland jumped out to an early lead in the first inning as Isabelle Pagan drove in Ariyana Crafton with a one-out single to right field. The lead was short-lived, as the Mustangs took advantage of the wind, hitting a two-run home run with two outs in the second. They then loaded the bases but were held in check as a fly ball to center was caught for the third out.
Morningside added a run in the third and another in the fourth. Midland got one back in the bottom of the fourth when Aja Henderson tripled down the right-field line, scoring Kamryn Barrientos, who led off the frame with a walk.
The Warriors’ offense got going in the fifth as Morningside turned to a relief pitcher. Sophie De Rouin singled, and Reese Floro reached on catcher’s interference—the second such occurrence in the game. Crafton loaded the bases with a single, setting up Pagan, who drove in two runs with a double. Morningside reentered its starting pitcher, but Barrientos delivered the go-ahead run with a single up the middle, scoring Crafton from second. Midland took a 5-4 lead into the sixth inning.
With the weather brewing to the south, the Mustangs’ offense found a spark. A single up the middle with two runners on tied the game. After a walk and another single loaded the bases, Morningside hit a two-run single. Midland got an out at third on the play and escaped the inning with a groundout to second.
The Warriors battled back in the bottom half. After Floro reached on a fielder’s choice, she stole second. Crafton’s single up the middle plated a run, and Pagan tied the game with a single through the right side. The game entered the final scheduled inning knotted at 7-7.
Morningside showed resilience at the plate, earning a leadoff walk. A passed ball and a single put runners on the corners before a sacrifice fly to center brought home the go-ahead run.
Midland had a chance in the seventh as Alexis Shepherd reached on a fielder’s choice and then stole second with two outs. An infield grounder, however, was handled cleanly by the Mustangs, sealing the 8-7 win.
The Warriors used three pitchers in the game. Paeton Coler started and went 2.2 innings, allowing three earned runs. Campbell Petrick worked 3.1 innings in relief and took the loss, giving up five runs (four earned). Mackenzie Groninga got the final three outs in the seventh.
Statistical Standouts
- Reese Floro: 1-for-2, 2 R, 2 SB
- Ariyana Crafton: 2-for-4, 3 R, 2 SB
- Isabelle Pagan: 3-for-4, 4 RBI, 2B
- Kamdyn Barrientos: 1-for-2, R, RBI, 2 BB
- Aja Henderson: 2-for-3, RBI, 2B, 3B
- Sophie De Rouin: 2-for-4, R
GAME TWO: Midland 9, Morningside 1 (5 innings)
Morningside struck first in the second game, breaking the scoreless tie in the second inning with a double to the gap in left.
Midland responded in a big way in its half of the inning. Matti Reiling led off with a single and moved up on a wild pitch. Jayci Reimers took advantage of the 25 mph wind, launching a two-run home run to give the Warriors the lead.
The inning continued as Midland loaded the bases with one out. Crafton doubled to the left-center gap, scoring two more runs. Pagan followed with an RBI groundout to second before Crafton sprinted home on a wild pitch to make it 6-1. Reimers capped the explosive frame with a two-run single to left. Only three of the runs in the inning were earned, as Morningside committed a costly error on a fielder’s choice.
After a quiet third and fourth inning offensively, Morningside threatened in the fifth with a pair of hits but was kept off the board. In the bottom half, Midland made a key substitution as Chloe Wagner entered as a pinch hitter with one out. On the first pitch she saw, she launched a solo home run to center field, ending the game via the run rule.
Groninga went the distance in the circle, pitching five innings while allowing one earned run. She struck out four batters and scattered eight hits.
Statistical Standouts
- Ariyana Crafton: 2-for-3, R, 2 RBI, 2B, 2 SB
- Matti Reiling: 3-for-3, 2 R
- Jayci Reimers: 2-for-3, R, 4 RBI, HR
- Mackenzie Groninga: 5.0 IP, 1 ER, 8 H, 4 K
Midland (17-9, 1-1 GPAC) will be back in action on Tuesday with a nonconference doubleheader against Nebraska Wesleyan. The teams are slated to play in Lincoln at 3 p.m. at the newly constructed NWU Field at the Sandhills Global Youth Complex.
