HELENA, Mont. - The Carroll College Softball team had an up-and-down afternoon, splitting a pair of games (0-5, 3-1) with Northwest University (Wash.) on Saturday in their first home series of the 2023 season.

The Fighting Saints (8-13, 4-7) ended a beautiful day for softball on a high-note, defeating Northwest (14-11, 7-6) 3-1 in the back-end of a doubleheader after dropping the opening game 0-5.

The sun shone bright, morale was high, temperatures were mild, and East Helena High School's turf sparkled to start game one of the afternoon doubleheader. Carroll's bats, however, stayed ice cold in the opener.

It was a pitchers duel through three innings, with neither team making much of an advance. Northwest managed to break the 0-0 tie in the top of the fourth inning. Olivia Brown singled to right field, scoring one to put the Eagles on top 1-0. 

Bella King sent the first pitch of the fifth inning over the fence, and her solo shot would double the Eagle lead, 2-0.

Things got away from the Saints in the seventh inning when a Madisyn Leffle triple scored one run, and a Sydney Maurer homer upped the lead to 5-0, where it would end.

Carroll finished the first game with just two hits on 24 plate appearances.

Abby Hanley (Las Vegas, Nev. / SR) did all she could, striking out six, but would finish with the complete game loss.

The victory for the Eagles was a significant one. The win marked No. 700 in Northwest Head Coach Pam Fink's career, and extended the Eagles' lead over the Saints in the Cascade Collegiate Conference standings.

Game two would be a different story, and a welcome one for the Saints.

An Amber Brewer (Phoenix, Ariz. / SR) stolen base would set her up in scoring position for an Alyssa Lybbert (Las Vegas, Nev. / SO) single to drive her home. Carroll would end the first inning with a 1-0 advantage.

Brewer would again cross home plate in the third inning, this time on her own accord. The senior blasted a solo homerun to left-center field to put Carroll on top 2-0. Kirsten Norris (Phoenix, Ariz. / SR) would score Lybbert on a sac fly to extend the Saints lead to three.

Maddison Leffle would drive in one run for the Eagles in the sixth inning to narrow the gap to 3-1, but Carroll would hold on over the final two innings to close out the 3-1 win.

Kennedy Venner (Billings, Mont. / FR) pitched a gem, finishing her afternoon with six strikeouts, one walk, and just one earned run.

The Saints and Eagles will return to the field in the morning for the final two games of their weekend series, with first pitch of game one scheduled for 11 a.m., and the second game scheduled for 1 p.m.

Visit www.carrollathletics.com for a recap of the action, and to stay up to date with everything going on in Carroll Athletics.