The Trinity softball team was busy over spring break, winning six of their ten games.

“A few of the games, our defense and offense went well, and when that happened we were successful,” said senior third-baseman Nicole Powers. “Our struggle was when we didn’t have both sides of the game being played.”

On Friday, March 8, the Trinity softball team split their doubleheader at home against Division II St. Mary’s University. The Tigers lost the first game 8-0, while sophomore catcher Caitlynn Dykes and senior outfielder Becca Rush got the only hits for Trinity.

Led by senior pitcher Sydney Friday, Trinity won the second game 4-3. Friday struck out four batters, while Dykes went 1-2 with a home run in the first inning.

“The win against St. Mary’s was a blessing morale-wise,” said head coach Brandi Crnkovic. “We came out and performed the way I was hoping the girls would play all year.”

Next the Tigers competed on Wednesday, where they won two games against Hardin-Simmons University.  Although tied going into the final inning, Trinity stuck it out to win the first game 2-1.

“We did a really good job of taking advantage of the opportunities we were given by the other team and executing in clutch situations,” Crnkovic said.

Dykes hit a two-run home run in the first inning of the second game, setting the stage for an 8-1 Trinity victory. Junior shortstop Brooke Sanchez and junior second-baseman Chrissy Armstrong each had two hits, while first-year pitcher Kaci Wellik struck out eight batters.

Trinity headed to Tucson, Ariz., on Thursday to compete in the Tucson Invitational. The day started with a nine-inning 6-4 win over Baldwin Wallace University. Sophomore outfielder Lauren Mercado went 3-4, while Armstrong went 2-3 and Wellik struck out ten batters.

“That was a really exciting game,” Crnkovic said. “We had some clutch hitting and pulled through.”

However, the Tigers lost their second game 5-0 to Central College. On the mound, Friday allowed two earned runs on three hits.

Trinity won their first game the second day 12-2 against Chatham University. Sophomore catcher Brittany Haby was 4-4 and Powers went 3-3. Trinity lost the second game 4-3 in eight innings against Dickinson College. Friday struck out nine batters, while Armstrong went 2-2 and Mercado went 2-4.

“In the outfield, we’ve been working on fixing our angles to the ball, and we seemed to do that really well in the Tucson games so that was exciting to see,” said senior outfielder Lindsay Weyand.

On the final day, the Tigers won their first game 9-1 against Alfred University. Russell led at the plate with two runs and two RBI. However, Trinity lost their second game 7-0 to Central College and Sanchez recorded two of the team’s five hits.

“Central has a lot of energy,” Powers said. “We went in there, executed, but as soon as they got points on us, we would get down.”

The Tigers return home this weekend to play the University of Dallas in a four-game conference series.

“Those will be the first conference games we play, and we’re looking to take four away from them,” Weyand said.