Apke Leads Bradley But Drake Completes Sweep

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Published on April 24 2017 2:15 pm
Last Updated on April 24 2017 2:15 pm
Written by Millie Lange

PEORIA, Ill. – Freshman Allison Apke (Teutopolis graduate) had a triple and home run, while senior Kelly Kapp collected her 67th career multi-hit game, but Drake completed a series sweep of Bradley with a 4-1 victory at Petersen Hotels Field at the Louisville Slugger Sports Complex Sunday.
 
Kapp collected the first of her two hits on the day to leadoff the bottom of the first and stole second for her Missouri Valley Conference leading 39th steal of the season.  Bradley (19-28 overall, 5-15 MVC) was unable to drive her home, however.
 
Drake (23-24 overall, 6-14) scored a pair of two-out runs in the top of the second to jump in front 2-0.  The Bulldogs had runners at second and third after a two-out walk and single.  Kennedy Frank drove in both runners with a double to right center.
 
Bradley tried to get a two-out rally going in the bottom of the third after a two-out bunt single by Kapp.  Junior Maria Schroeder singled up the middle and Kapp tried to score on a Drake overthrow, but was tossed out at the plate to end the frame.
 
Frank led off the Drake fifth with a triple and came home on a Megan Sowa single as the Bulldogs pushed the advantage to 3-0.
 
The Braves answered with a run in the bottom of the fifth on a leadoff solo homer by Apke as Bradley trimmed the Drake lead to 3-1.
 
Drake added an insurance fun in the top of the sixth to take a 4-1 lead.  With a runner on first after a one-out walk, Kaitlyn Finneran had a single and the runner came all the way around from first after a Bradley error on the play.  The Braves got out of the inning without any further damage with Drake leaving two runners in scoring position.
 
Drake starter Kailee Smith worked around a two-out single by Caitlyn McCarron in the sixth and got out of another jam in the seventh.  Apke legged out a one-out triple down the right field line in the seventh.  Smith settled down to get a pair of groundouts to close out the game, however, as she earned all three wins for the Bulldogs in the series.
 
Apke and Kapp each went 2-for-3 at the plate, combining for four of Bradley’s six hits.  The multi-hit performance was the 67th of Kapp’s career and pushed her season total to 72, which ranks fourth among Bradley season marks.

Saturday Games

Drake’s Kailee Smith combined to hold Bradley to three hits over 10.1 scoreless innings and was 3-for-8 at the plate to help power the Bulldogs to 5-0 and 5-3 victories over the Braves Saturday afternoon at Petersen Hotels Field in Missouri Valley Conference softball action.
 
Smith tossed a complete-game two-hit shutout in the opener, limiting Bradley (19-27 overall, 5-14 MVC) to a one-out Stephanie Campos double in the third and a two-out Kealia Wysocki double in the fourth.
 
Drake (22-24 overall, 5-14 MVC) got all the runs it would need in the series opener in the first inning.  A hit batter and back-to-back singles to start the game loaded the bases.  The Bulldogs got a run on a groundout and took a 2-0 lead when Megan Sowa raced home on a wild pitch.
 
A RBI double off the bat of Taryn Pena in the top of the third pushed the Drake advantage to 3-0 and Pena drove in another run in the sixth with a two-out bases loaded walk after falling behind in the count 0-2.  A wild seventh innings, which included a pick off, two Bradley errors and the final out of the frame coming  at the plate resulted in an unearned run coming home on a two-out passed ball as Drake went on to take the day’s first game 5-0.
 
In the nightcap, Bradley came up empty after a two-out Caitlyn McCarron in the first, but took a 1-0 lead in the second.  Elizabeth Leonard and Allison Apke both walked to start the second and advanced to second and third on a groundout.  Leonard later scored on a sacrifice fly by Telly Hunter as the Braves grabbed their first lead of the afternoon.
 
Drake answered with two runs in the top of the third.  The Bulldogs had runners at the corners after a one-out walk and a Bradley error on a single.  Smith drove in the first run of the inning with an infield single to tie the game at 1-1 and Drake held a 2-1 advantage after Sowa swiped home on a double steal.
 
A two-run bottom of the third put Bradley back in front 3-2.  Junior Maria Schroeder reached on an error to open the inning and McCarron followed with her second hit of the day.  Wysocki drove in Schroeder from second with a RBI single and the second run of the inning came home on a Drake double play.
 
The lead was short lived, however, as Drake came up with a run in the top of the fourth.  Tasha Alexander led off the inning with a double and moved to third on a wild pitch.  Kaitlyn Finneran tied the game at 3-3 with a sacrifice fly down the right field line.
 
Another wild inning led to two more Drake runs in the top of the sixth.  Alexander drew a four-pitch walk and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt before stealing third.  Gabbie Jonas drove in Alexander with the go-ahead run with a single down the left field line and Jonas moved to second on a Bradley error on the play.  The Bulldogs had runners at second and third after a Kennedy Frank single and Drake added an insurance run to take a 5-3 lead on a squeeze bunt by Mandi Roemmich.  Bradley turned a double play on an over-the-shoulder catch by Leonard in foul territory at the plate, getting the last out of the inning at the plate.
 
Apke had a leadoff double in the sixth, but Bradley was unable to get a run across and a one-out walk by Schroeder in the seventh was the only other runner the Braves had in the final two innings as Drake held on for the 5-3 victory to sweep the doubleheader.