William Penn Drops First Two Games of Season in Tight Affairs

Rosemont, Ill.--The Statesmen softball team succumbed to defeat for the first time this season as it competed in the NAIA Leadoff Classic hosted by Roosevelt Friday.

WPU (4-2), which won its first four matchups of 2025 last weekend, fell to Aquinas (Mich.) 3-0 to open the day.  The navy and gold then lost 4-3 to No. 6 nationally-ranked Madonna (Mich.) in Friday's nightcap.

William Penn was stymied offensively against the Saints in the Classic opener, recording just three hits.  Unfortunately, the squad failed to advance any runner into scoring position.

Due to its struggles, a strong outing by Madie Anderson (Sr., Mount Pleasant, Iowa, Elementary Education) was squandered.  The senior kept WPU in the game as she only permitted two earned runs on five hits in the complete game.  Anderson struck out 10 batters and walked just one, but was saddled with the loss.

Despite only recording four base knocks versus the Crusaders, WPU broke through right away as Tori Smith (So., Olympia, Wash., Secondary Education) doubled home sister Laila Smith (So., Olympia, Wash., Elementary Education).  Tori Smith guided the Statesmen lineup with two hits.

Following two scoreless frames, the navy and gold doubled their advantage in the fourth.  Laila Pelds (Sr., Pleasant Hill, Iowa, Elementary Education) led off with a single and was pinch-ran for Erin Dawson (Fr., Delta, Iowa, Psychology and Sociology).  Four batters later, with Dawson on third, Ella Pierce (Sr., McClelland, Iowa, Business Management) drove a ball deep enough into center field for Dawson to tag up and score William Penn's second run.

Madonna struck back, however, taking the lead with three runs in the bottom of the fourth.  The Crusaders added another in the fifth for necessary insurance.

The fourth run proved to be the difference as Marin Frazee (So., Sioux City, Iowa, Exercise Science) scored off a single from Peyton Naranjo (So., Ripon, Calif., Biology) in the seventh to cut the deficit to one at 4-3.  Serving as the tying run, the sophomore eventually moved to third when WPU loaded the bases, but MU held on as Chelsey Huff (Sr., Douds, Iowa, Exercise Science) flew out to end the game.

While Huff did not have success at the dish, she was solid in the pitching circle, keeping Madonna mostly at bay.  The senior allowed three runs on four hits in four frames; she also managed one strikeout.

Bryant was equally effective as only one run came across in her two-inning relief appearance.  Overall, the Crusaders were limited to five hits.

Both sides were a bit sloppy defensively as Madonna committed three errors and William Penn had two fielding mistakes.

"These were a couple of tough losses," Head Coach Laura North said.  "It is early in the season, however, and we learned a lot about ourselves.  I like the way we battled against No. 6 Madonna.  We had opportunities to win, so I am very proud of our efforts."

Next Up: William Penn remains in Rosemont, Ill. Saturday for the second of the three-day trip.  The Statesmen first meet Judson (Ill.) at 2:30 p.m. and finish the day against Indiana Sound Bend at 7:30 p.m.