FRANKLIN, Ind. – The Franklin College softball team welcomed the Hanover Panthers to Behrens Field on Wednesday (Apr. 12) afternoon for a pair of big Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC) contests.

The afternoon saw offense come at a premium as the Grizzlies (10-11, 3-3 HCAC) and Panthers (9-13, 4-2 HCAC) fight for every single run. The opener saw the Franklin take a 3-0 win before the Panthers earned a split with a 3-2 win in the night cap.

Game One: Franklin 3 – Hanover 0
Both offenses were held silent until the bottom half of the fourth inning when Franklin plated all three of the game's runs. Sydney Bostic led off the inning with her first career home run with a Molly Wallace RBI double and Addie Csikos sac fly following later in the inning.

But the story of game one was sophomore starter Sydney Pitts, who was dominant in the circle and earned her first career shutout. Pitts allowed just two runners to reach third base in the game, scattering six hits and striking out four to improve to 4-3 on the season.

Game Two: Hanover 3 – Franklin 2
The Grizzlies got on the board in the first when a ground out from Genesis Munoz brought Annie Kluemper home for the game's first run. But the Grizzlies couldn't tack on any insurance before the game's deciding blast, a three-run home run from Hanover's Alex Miller gave the Panthers all their offense.

Back-to-back doubles from Kluemper and Bostic opened the sixth inning and cut the lead to one. The home side loaded the bases with two outs in the inning but couldn't get the tying run across in their final quality scoring chance of the day.

Stephanni Kleber (3-6) got the start in the circle, tossing six innings of eight hit ball with no walks and two strikeouts. Kluemper, Bostic and Makayla Plymale had two hits each.

Up Next
The Grizzlies continue a busy week of competition on Thursday (Apr. 14) night, hitting the road for a pair of league games against Rose-Hulman. First pitch is set for 3:30 p.m.