KISSIMMEE, Florida - With the winter weather of northeast Ohio still lingering, the Lake Erie College softball program took the opportunity to head down south to face off with some of the best NCAA Division II has to offer in the Spring Games. Facing off with 8 teams in four days of competition, it was a busy week for the Storm in Florida. Fortunately, they were able to pull away with some valuable experience and their first wins of the season. The game-by-game results were as follows. 

Minnesota - Duluth 9, Lake Erie 0

After field conditions canceled the Storm's first scheduled contest with Ferris State, the Storm were able to take the field against the Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs. Grace Hammer got the start in the circle for the Storm, but Bulldog home runs in both the first and third innings would put this game out of reach for Lake Erie.

Saginaw Valley State 5, Lake Erie 4

In the next contest, the Storm took on the Cardinals of Saginaw Valley State. Lake Erie kicked off the scoring in the first inning with a CJ Garcia home run and RBI would put the Storm up 2-0. After Saginaw Valley evened the score in the next two innings, a Cardinal error would bring in 2 Storm baserunners to give Lake Erie control of the game. However, Saginaw Valley would eventually even the score and go ahead in the 8th inning to finish the contest.

East Stroudsburg 6, Lake Erie 4

Much like the previous contest, the Storm got off to a great start by batting in 4 runs in the first inning with the last two runners reaching home after a Cheyenne Hamel single. However, the Warriors would respond with 2 runs in the 1st, 3rd, and 5th innings to complete their comeback by a score of 6 to 4. 

Concord 5, Lake Erie 3

Led by a strong Payton Brownlee leadoff double, the Storm got off another great start in this contest with a 2 run lead in the first. However, Concord would take the lead back in the third, but some strong hitting from Jordyn Hawkins down the stretch would not be enough to close the gap on the Mountain Lions. After this contest, the Storm were scheduled to take on the Lewis Flyers, but weather conditions would cancel that contest. 

Shippensburg 5, Lake Erie 1

After a day off, the Storm took on the Shippensburg Raiders. Carly Rowland would get the start for Lake Erie, and the Storm would struggle to keep pace with the Raiders offensively at first. Ava Scott would attempt to lead the Storm comeback with an RBI double in the 6th, but the Raiders pulled away with a 5-1 win. 

Lake Erie 1, Pitt.-Johnstown 0

After a tough week, the Storm finally got into the win column with a win over the Pitt-Johnstown Mountain Cats. The game was initially a defensive struggle with neither team taking control of the game. The deadlock was broken with a Kiya Smith home run in the 5th, and the lone run would be enough to give the Storm their first win of the season. Grace Hammer would also get credit for the shutout from the pitcher's circle. 

Grand Valley State 8,  Lake Erie 1

On the final day of competition in Florida for Lake Erie, the Storm had a tough task in front of them in the form of the Grand Valley State Lakers. Despite the challenge, the Storm got off to their trademark fast start by taking an early 1-0 lead as a Laker fielding error. Unfortunately, the Lakers would control the game the rest of the way, and the Storm would fall 8-1. 

Lake Erie 3, Lock Haven 1

In the final contest of their Florida road trip, the Storm faced off with Lock Haven. The first of 5 scheduled contests the Storm have with the Bald Eagles this season would be all Lake Erie from the start. A Payton Brownlee steal would set up back-to-back sacrifice flies that would open up the scoring for the Storm in the first. In the second inning, a Chloe Allen single would bring in a third run for the Storm, and that would be enough to seal the win for Lake Erie. 

After this tough, but successful road trip, the Storm will get their home debut underway as the Clarion Golden Eagles will head to Painesville for a doubleheader starting at 2 pm on Thursday, March 17th.