Wheeling, W. Va. - Throughout the 2022-23 spring season, weather wreaked havoc on the Wheeling University Baseball and Softball schedule, with cancelations and postponed games running rampant across the conference. This forced the Wheeling Softball team to have just two home doubleheaders through March and the halfway point of April. It wasn't until April 23rd and 24th that they held their third and fourth home doubleheader when they hosted Frostburg and Fairmont State in a Mountain East Conference (MEC) matchup. After a disappointing Doubleheader against Frostburg State, a senior took the mound Sunday and led the Cardinals to victory.
Sunday, April 24th: Game 1: Wheeling 3, Fairmont State 0 Game 2: Wheeling 4, Fairmont 3
After a Saturday afternoon that saw the team lose both ends of a doubleheader, the Cardinals needed to find a way back into the win column. Before the game, the Cardinals honored their class of 2022 seniors in a special pregame ceremony, honoring their time in the program over the past four years. Little did the Cardinals know that one of those seniors was about to take charge of the circle and have one of the most dominant performances of the season. Madison Macy had been a consistent force for the Cardinals in the circle, and was getting the call, after being honored in pregame, to lead the team against the Falcons.
Madison took control of the game early getting the first out of the game on the first pitch she threw when she got the Falcons' Courtney Moyer to ground out. She eased her way through the inning with a groundout and a flyout that brought her team up for their first swings of the day. The Cardinal hitters rode Macy's momentum and quickly gave her a lead to work with, in the bottom of the first. Gina Fogle singled to start the inning and, two batters later, she was at third after a single by Taylor Hradek. Hradek would then take off for second, allowing Fogle to score and giving the Cardinals a 1-0 lead. Hradek would come around to score later in the inning, after stealing home, and the Cardinals held a 2-0 lead after an inning.
The Falcons would get their first hit to start the top of the second, but a Fielder's Choice, a pop out, and a flyout ended the threat and kept the Cardinals ahead 2-0. Fairmont would once again get a single to start the third and, once again, the runner would be stranded, and the Cardinals held their 2-0 lead heading into the bottom of the third. That was until Autumn Oehlstrom lifted a solo home run to right field and gave Wheeling a 3-0 lead in the bottom half of the inning. Wheeling was staked to a 3-0 lead after three innings and that would be more than enough support for Macy. She had her first strikeout in the top of the third inning and was beginning to hit her groove.
She added two more strikeouts in the fourth and another in the fifth to give her three over the first five innings. She allowed her third hit of the day to lead off the top of the fourth but went on to retire nine straight batters from the fourth to the sixth inning, giving the Cardinals a comfortable advantage. The Falcons got just their second runner in scoring position of the day in the top of the seventh when Emily Riggs hit a leadoff double. A groundout moved the runner to third with one out before Macy reared back and got a big strikeout for the second out. She was able to hold the shutout with a flyout to end the game and gave Wheeling a big 3-0 victory.
Most of the time when heading to the second game of a doubleheader, you see a new pitcher come to the mound. Today, this wasn't the case as, when the Cardinals took the field for game two, it was Macy who led them out on the field. She allowed a one out single in the first but kept the Falcons off the board with a strikeout to end the inning. She picked up her second straight strikeout to start the second, and once again allowed a one-out single. However, she threw up her ninth zero of the game and kept it a scoreless contest. The Falcon's third hit of the game was a big one as a leadoff triple immediately caused a threat. That run would come home on an RBI groundout that ended Macy's day. Wheeling would battle back for their senior and secure the 4-3 win to sweep the doubleheader.
In total, Macy pitched 9.1 innings allowing just one earned run on eight hits while striking out eight batters. She did not walk a hitter in either contest and attacked the strike zone throughout. It was a strong performance for the senior as she pitched for the final time on her home field. It was a performance she wouldn't forget and a nice cap to a season that saw Wheeling grow all around.
