WINONA LAKE – A rough defensive day allowed Taylor to sweep Grace’s softball team on Tuesday.

The Lady Lancers (14-15, 7-7 Crossroads League) had nine errors in the doubleheader, falling 9-5 and 4-0 at Miller Athletic Complex.

In the opener, Grace lost the game after one poor inning. The Lady Lancers struggled defensively, committing five errors in a 9-6 defeat.

Grace took the lead in the bottom of the first. Hannah Herbster led off with a single, stole second and reached third on a single by Abby Mozingo. Herbster then scampered home on a wild pitch.

Ashley Kleinbub later hit a ground ball to the left side of the infield, allowing Mozingo to score to give the Lady Lancers a 2-0 lead.

Taylor countered with three runs in the top of the fourth to go on top, benefitting from a throwing error by Grace.
The Trojans’ lead did not last long. Grace plated twice in the bottom of the inning as Herbster and Clarissa Knight both had singles to move the Lady Lancers ahead 4-3.

In the fifth, Grace tacked on another run to grab a 5-3 cushion. Kleinbub started the inning with a single and eventually moved to third and scored on a balk by Taylor’s pitcher.

But the Lady Lancers self-imploded in the sixth. Taylor racked up six runs – all unearned runs – after Grace’s defense had four errors in the frame.

Grace had baserunners in the last two innings, but the hosts were unable to generate a run-scoring rally.

Herbster hit 2-for-4 with two runs and two stolen bases, and Kleinbub was 2-for-4 with a run and a steal.

In the second game, Grace’s defense sputtered again with four more errors. Offensively, the Lady Lancers scattered five hits across the seven innings in a 4-0 defeat.

The Trojans (21-10, 13-3 CL) pushed across a single run in the first, third, sixth and seventh innings.

Grace, on the other hand, put a runner in scoring position in the first three innings. But the Lady Lancers were unable to conjure up a timely hit to drive in a run, as ended up being the case for the rest of the contest.

Mozingo had a hit and a steal, and Paige Hlutke and Kleinbub were 1-for-2.

The Lady Lancers travel to No. 4 Marian on Wednesday before returning home on Friday for a 3 p.m. doubleheader with Mt. Vernon Nazarene.