by CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa — Jolona Shield (Oglala-Lakota/Crow) drove in five runs to make her Mount Mercy’s new single-season RBI record holder as the Mustangs reached the 20-win mark with a 9-7, 11-3 sweep of Clarke in Heart of America Athletic Conference softball action Thursday night at Busse Field.
It’s Mount Mercy’s first 20-win season since 2014. The Mustangs, the third-place team in the Heart’s North Division, improved to 20-15 overall and 9-7 in the Heart while the Pride dipped to 6-16 on the season and 4-6 in conference play. Mount Mercy hosts the fifth-place squad in the Heart’s South Division, MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.) (17-12, 6-6 Heart), at 3:00 p.m. on Friday at Busse Field.
The Mustangs didn’t waste any time putting runs on the board against Clarke, plating two in each of the first three innings to give starter Madelyn Irwin a 6-0 lead. They did all their work with two outs in the first inning, including three straight hits by Jess Heick, Shield, and Tawny Menster.
Irwin allowed two hits in the first inning, but settled in nicely, giving up just one more hit over the next three frames. Sydney Tigges hit a 3-run homer in the fourth inning to cut Mount Mercy’s lead to 6-4. The Pride tied it at 6-6 in the top of the sixth, but the Mustangs responded with a bases-clearing double by Menster in the bottom half to move in front, 9-6.
Irwin (10-4) earned her 10th win of the season after shutting down Clarke’s offense in the seventh. She struck out two in a complete game performance. Menster accounted for more than half the Mustangs’ run production, going 2-for-4 with four RBI and a run scored. Emily Oler finished with three hits while Heick and Shield joined Menster with two apiece.
Clarke struck first in game two when Tigges tagged her second home run of the night. The Pride led, 3-0, until the third inning when the Mount Mercy offense came to life. The Mustangs scored three in the third, five in the fourth, and three more in the fifth to end the game early. After allowing two hits and three runs in the first inning, Menster (6-8) found her groove and held Clarke to only four hits and no runs over the final four frames.
Shield’s run-scoring double in her third at-bat tied Mount Mercy Hall of Famer Kim Hutchins’ RBI mark (54), then she broke it an inning later with a 2-run double to end the game. Shield currently leads the NAIA with 56 runs batted in with more than 20 games still remaining in the regular season. She finished the nightcap a perfect 4-for-4 with two doubles, four RBI, and a run scored. Claudia Maganawas 2-for-3 with two RBI and two runs scored. Jessica Miller also recorded two hits, scored three runs, and drove in another.
