Delaney Reefe stepped up to the plate with the bases loaded and no outs. Maryland softball had a one-run cushion and the freshman catcher had an opportunity to increase the lead. She swung at the first pitch, hitting a grand slam over the left field fence.
Behind the big hit and a strong performance from Courtney Wyche, the Terps broke a three-game losing streak with an 8-1 win over Loyola Marymount on Sunday.
Wyche threw a complete game in her second appearance of the season. The graduate pitcher didn’t allow a hit until the sixth inning, shutting down the Lions’ attack for the majority of the game. She ended the afternoon with eight strikeouts and just two hits allowed.
Wyche’s only other appearance this weekend came in Maryland’s 6-5 loss to UCLA on Saturday. She allowed five earned runs in six innings while striking out seven.
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Reefe started in all five games this weekend, earning five hits, six runs batted in and 22 putouts. The grand slam marked her first collegiate home run.
Maryland (2-3) jumped out to a five-run lead in the second inning following Reefe’s big swing and a Mazie MacFarlane RBI. Despite the early offensive firepower, that 5-0 score remained for the next three innings. The Terps’ defense stayed consistent with Wyche’s strong pitching at the helm. No errors in the field kept the Lions off the bases.
LMU (1-2) broke through early in the sixth inning to spoil Wyche’s perfect game. Senior Adele Braun smacked a solo home run to left field in the first at-bat of the frame, giving the Lions their first run of the game.
Maryland struggled to score after the second inning, but the seventh inning brought back the energy. In the Terps’ last chance to deepen the lead, Jaeda McFarland singled to right field, giving sophomore Madison Runyan enough time to score from second.
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Mercer transfer Diamond Williams failed to get a hit in Maryland’s first clash with LMU on Saturday. But the outfielder shone through in the seventh inning, slamming the ball over the left field fence for a two-run homer. Williams’ hit gave the Terps the space they needed to just rely on dominant defense the rest of the way.
Wyche remained on the mound for the entirety of the game. In the seventh and final inning, she struck out the first two batters she saw but struggled to close out the game. A fielding error by shortstop Sammi Woods and a Lauryn Carter single put runners on first and second.
In the next at-bat, Hayley Olivas grounded out to second base, ending the game and closing out the Terps’ first weekend series with a win.
