LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The Bellarmine University softball team may have only scored two runs against Davenport in Friday's doubleheader at Knights Field, but
Lillie Nitzken made sure her squad went out with a bang.
In the finale, the senior first baseman launched a walk-off homer as Bellarmine followed a 2-0 loss to Davenport with a dramatic 2-1 victory.
The second game went into extra innings with Bellarmine (8-8) and Davenport (12-3) tied at 1. After right-hander
Madeline Kurtz retired the Panthers in order in the top of the eighth, Nitzken led off the bottom half against Ellie Muilenburg. She promptly launched her second home run of the season, a drive to left that ended the game.
Kurtz (3-3) was splendid in the circle, allowing a single run on four hits with two strikeouts in an 8.0-inning, complete-game victory. Davenport broke up Kurtz' shutout bid with two outs in the seventh inning.
Bellarmine scored its other run in the fifth when senior center fielder
Katie Stamper tripled and scored on freshman shortstop
Alexa Foster's two-out RBI single.
In the first game, Nitzken recorded Bellarmine's only hit, an infield single in the first. Davenport's Mallory Teunissen (7-3) fired a one-hit shutout while striking out eight.
Sophomore right-hander
Sabrina Fussenegger (2-4) suffered the hard-luck loss, allowing two earned runs over 7.0 innings in a complete-game outing.
Bellarmine opens GLVC play Saturday by hosting Missouri S&T in a doubleheader that starts at noon (ET).
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GAME 1 BOX SCORE (HTM)
GAME 2 BOX SCORE (HTM)