By By SCOTT NOVAK / Dowagiac Daily News
A pair of extra inning victories lifted the Dowagiac varsity softball team to the Big 16 Conference West Division championship on Tuesday.
The Chieftains, ranked No. 8 in the latest coaches poll, swept visiting Lakeshore, the defending Division 2 state champions, 3-2 in 12 innings and 2-1 in 10 innings.
Dowagiac (23-4, 8-0 SMAC West) led 1-0 throughout the entire first contest untill the Lady Lancers scored a run in the top of the seventh.
The game remained tied until the bottom of the 12th when Kim Luthringer and Mandy Parish both scored when Lindsey Tyler put the ball in play and the Lady Lancers were unable to make the defensive play at first base.
Luthringer scored from third and Parish scored from second after nearly running over her coach.
Dowagiac and Lakeshore both finished with six hits and both committed four errors in the contest.
Brittney Reist (10-2) allowed two runs, both unearned, on six hits with six strike outs.
Reist singled and drove in a run, while Brittney Bruens, Kim Luthringer, Holly Lowe, Ashley Willis and Parish all singled. Lindsay Tyler drove in a run for Dowagiac, which improved 23-4 overall and 8-0 in the West Division.
In the second game the Lady Lancers jumped out to a 1-0 lead before the Chieftains knotted the score with a run in the fifth inning.
The game remained deadlocked until the bottom of the 10th when Amy Wood reached base, was moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Brittany Bruens and advanced to third on a ground ball out.
Reist then lifted a fly ball to deep right-center field allowing Wood to score with ease.
In the nightcap Ashley Willis (9-2) picked up the victory as she scattered nine hits with four strike outs.
Dowagiac had seven hits, led by Parish who doubled and Luthringer who had three singles.
Dowagiac also got two hits from Amy Wood, and RBIs from Wood and Reist.
Dowagiac was solid all day defensively and got two great pitching performances according to Behnke.
Behnke, who is in his first season as head coach of the Dowagiac program, noted that two extra inning games was just the ticket.
Dowagiac will host Coldwater on Thursday.