Softball Recap: Coldwater's bats on fire as Cardinals split with Parma Western

JACKSON – The bats were booming Wednesday afternoon as Coldwater traveled to Parma Western for a key Interstate 8 softball doubleheader. Coldwater battled their way to a hard-earned split with the Panthers, falling in game one 17-8 while taking game two 14-2.

Game one saw Coldwater fall victim to a late Parma rally, as the Cardinals took an 8-7 lead into the bottom of the sixth inning. The Panthers buckled down and put up 10 runs in the bottom half of the inning, going on to take the 17-8 win. Parma out hit Coldwater 17-10 in the win and took advantage of five Cardinal errors to take the victory.

Mya Porter took the loss on the mound for Coldwater after throwing five and two-thirds innings, allowing 13 hits and 15 runs with only two earned. Porter walked four batters and struck out seven.

Porter helped her cause at the plate, finishing 2-for-4 with a double and a triple to go with three RBIs and a run scored.

Rylie VanAken dialed long distance in the tough loss, finishing 2-for-4 with a home run and four RBIs with two runs scored.

Also notching multi-hit games for the Cardinal effort was Maren DeBeau with two singles and two runs scored; Mackenzie Searing with two singles and an RBI; while Coley Burkhardt scored two runs in the loss.

Game two saw the Cardinals break out the big sticks as Coldwater out hit Parma 15-7, with eight of those 15 hits coming of the extra base variety. That number included three total home runs between two batters who are on fire at the plate.

Coldwater opened an early lead and never looked back, overcoming a first inning 2-1 deficit to score 13 unanswered runs to take the win.

Mackenzie Searing took the win on the mound for Coldwater after throwing seven innings in the start, allowing seven hits and two runs with two strikeouts.

It was VanAken bringing the big stick in game two, as the sophomore infielder finished  by going 3-for-4 with two home runs, six RBIs, and two runs scored.

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Mya Porter also had another big game for the Cardinals, notching a 3-for-3 effort with a home run, five RBIs and two runs scored.

Speaking of big games, sophomore Coley Burkhardt had a monster game behind the plate as she finished 4-for-5 with three doubles, three RBIs and two runs scored.

Also putting on a hitting display for Coldwater was Maren DeBeau who went 3-for-4 with a double and five RBIs; Maddie Moore with a double and a run scored; and Izzy Angevine with a single and two runs scored.

With the two-game split the Cardinals now sit at 8-13 overall on the season with a trip to Grass Lake on the horizon.

This article originally appeared on Coldwater Daily Reporter: Softball: Coldwater puts on offensive show in two game split with Parma