Softball: Lady Raiders' Bats Come Alive in Conference Win

Bolingbrook softball coach Jean Ryan-Moak has been waiting all season for the Lady Raiders’ bats to come to life.

“Our main issue has been offense,” Ryan-Moak said of Bolingbrook losing  five of its first seven games to start the season. “We finally showed what we could do (offensively). It took us eight games.”

Marisa Conquepalmi and Ashley Duluca had the two key hits to frame the Lady Raiders’ 6-4 victory over Lincoln-Way West in a Southwest Suburban Conference crossover Monday afternoon in Bolingbrook.

Bolingbrook's duo each had clutch two-out, two-run doubles, and Eryn Pondo went the distance on the hill to capture her first victory of the spring.

Lincoln-Way West (5-4) had the potential game-tying runs on base with two outs in the seventh inning, but its second base-running gaffe of the game enabled Bolingbrook shortstop Mallie Hall to end the game with a putout on the base paths.

The Raiders (3-5) struck first when Conquepalmi plated Hall and pinch-runner Samantha Hankey with a lined-shot double over the Warriors’  centerfielder in their first at-bat.

Pondo pitched out of a second-and-third-no-out-jam in the Warriors’ second, but L-W West solved the senior right-hander in the third.

The Warriors scored three times, and the inning was prolonged by a costly throwing error.

“We had too many errors,” Ryan-Moak said.

But the Lady Raiders came right back in their half of the third.

Dani Knaak singled to open the frame and quickly moved to third when L-W West botched a sacrifice bunt by Nikki Wood, enabling both runners to advance to third and second, respectively.

Conquepalmi knotted the game at 3-3 when the junior catcher roped another shot that turned into a sacrifice fly.

Wood and Hankey, again running for Pondo, who had walked prior to Conquepalmi tying the game, raced home when Deluca hit a drive to the base of the left-center field fence.

“I was just thinking contact,” said Deluca. I thought it was going to be over (the outfielders’ heads) with the wind pushing it.”

Wood appeared to give Bolingbrook a critical insurance run, but the speedy sophomore was gunned down at the plate after tripling to start the Raiders’ sixth.

“That was my fault,” Ryan-Moak said. “I thought the ball went past the third-baseman farther. I was thinking, ’If we lose this game by one run . . .’”

L-W West closed to within 5-4 in the sixth, but Bolingbrook responded in kind. Freshman Courtney Hankey delivered the Raiders’ second sacrifice fly to account for the final score.

“That insurance run was huge,” said. “It was huge for our confidence going into the top of the seventh inning.”

The Raiders finished with eight hits.