TIFFIN, Ohio—The Mount Union softball team swept Heidelberg in an Ohio Athletic Conference doubleheader Sunday at Hedges Boyer Park in Tiffin. The Purple Raiders won the first game, 3-0, before rallying for a 7-6 win in the nightcap.

Bre Willis (Navarre/Fairless) recorded her fourth shutout of the season in the opener while the Raiders needed some late-inning heroics to rally for the win in the nightcap.

Willis had her best outing of the season. She was nearly unhittable, allowing just two hits while recording a season-high 10 strikeouts. Willis earned her ninth win of the season and tied Sara Tharp for second in school history with 13 career shutouts.

The Raider lineup made sure Willis pitched with the lead throughout, scoring a pair of runs in the first inning. Marissa Earl (Massillon/Massillon Washington) singled and advanced to second base on a passed ball before scoring on a single by Leigh Siedlak (Westerville/Westerville South). Shelby Carmichael (Dalton/Dalton) followed with an RBI groundout that scored Amy Brown (Uniontown/Lake).

Earl singled to start the 5th and advanced to third base on a pair of groundouts before scoring on an error by the pitcher for the Raiders' final run.

Lexie Pinkelman (5-5) took the loss for Heidelberg. Pinkelman pitched seven innings and allowed two earned runs on nine hits. She also recorded six strikeouts.

In the second game, the Raiders trailed 5-4 with only three outs remaining before rallying for three runs in the top of the 7th inning. Earl started the rally by reaching on an error. She advanced to second on a groundout and then to third on a wild pitch. Siedlak then singled for her third RBI of the series, advancing to second on the throw. After a single by Carmichael, Krista Leighty (Wooster/Triway), who pinch ran for Siedlak, scampered home on a wild pitch to take the lead. An RBI single by Brenna Longo (Moon, Pa./Moon) gave the Raiders a two-run lead.

Mount Union again found success in the 1st inning of the game. With two outs, the Raiders got three consecutive singles. Carmichael delivered the final hit, which plated Keilah Capriola (Akron/Coventry).

The Heidelberg bats got going in the bottom of the inning, scoring three runs on four hits. Pinkelman helped her own cause and got the Student Prince on the board with an RBI single. After loading the bases, Kelly Martz drove in a pair of runs with a single.

The Raiders took advantage of a few Berg miscues for a 3rd inning rally to tie the game. Kristen Gromes (Navarre/Fairless) led-off with a single. Gromes advanced to second on a passed ball and moved to third on a single by Capriola. Another passed ball allowed Gromes to score and Capriola to advance to third. She scored on a wild pitch.

Earl doubled to start the 5th and scored on a single by Siedlak to take a 4-3 lead. Siedlak finished the day with five hits and three RBI.

A single by Bridget Moran was followed by a Raider error to start the bottom of the 6th. Following a flyout and groundout, Bessie Artino drove in both runners with a double to retake the lead heading into the final inning. Moran added an RBI single in the 7th.

Rachel McAninch (West Jefferson/West Jefferson) went the distance to get the victory for the Raiders. McAninch (7-10) had six strikeouts and allowed four earned runs on 11 hits. Pinkelman started again for Heidelberg and allowed two earned runs in four innings of action. Christine Foster (3-2) allowed three runs on five hits in three innings of relief duty.

Mount Union (18-18, 8-8 OAC) will travel to Wilmington next Saturday for its regular season finale. A third consecutive sweep would greatly help the Raiders' chance of qualifying for the OAC Tournament.

Mount Union 3, Heidelberg 0 (Game 1)
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Mount Union......... 200 010 0 -  3  9  0      (17-18, 7-8 OAC)
Heidelberg.......... 000 000 0 -  0  2  1      (15-14, 5-7 OAC)
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Pitchers: Mount Union - Bre Willis and . Heidelberg - L. Pinkelman and .
Win-Bre Willis(9-8)  Loss-L. Pinkelman(5-5)  T-1:55  A-56
Weather: 45 degrees and clouds

Mount Union 7, Heidelberg 6(Game 2)
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Mount Union......... 102 010 3 -  7 12  2      (18-18, 8-8 OAC)
Heidelberg.......... 300 002 1 -  6 11  1      (15-15, 5-8 OAC)
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Pitchers: Mount Union - Rachel McAninch and . Heidelberg - L. Pinkelman; C. Foster(5) and .
Win-Rachel McAninch(7-10)  Loss-C. Foster(3-2)  T-1:50  A-43
Weather: 45 degrees and cold