Colleen Wren held allowed just one unearned run to Tawas in Monday's opener.
Linda Eyer
Tawas Area's Rachel Adaline (left) and Katie LaHaye make doubly sure they catch an Ogemaw Heights pop-up during Monday's doubleheader.

TAWAS AREA - May 5, 2008 - Ogemaw Heights did its part Monday to tighten up the North East Michigan Conference softball chase, knocking off Tawas Area 4-1 in the first game of a doubleheader. The Braves came back to blank the Falcons 10-0 in the second game, but the damage was done: six teams are now within two games of one another in the NEMC chase, with Standish-Sterling (having played two more games thus far) holding the league lead for the moment.

Wren was masterful in the first game, allowing only one runner as far as third base through the first six innings.

Tawas didn't go down easily in the seventh, scratching out a run before Ogemaw's Jacie Lucas threw out an Ogemaw baserunner at third to end the game. Without that play, Tawas would have brought the tying run to the plate.

The Falcons scored an unearned run in the first as Wren walked, stole second and third and came home on an error.

Ogemaw added two critical runs in the sixth as Angela Carollo doubled, Wren brought her home with a base hit and Lauren Gillette added an RBI double.

Tiffany Rouse singled and scored on an error in the seventh.

Nikki Stein took the loss despite striking out 12 batters.

In the second game, Stein was nearly unhittable in throwing a two-hit shutout and striking out nine.

Meanwhile, the Tawas bats came alive and the Falcon defense helped out with eight errors.

Stein had an RBI single and Courtney McKenzie followed with a run-scoring triple to give the Braves a 2-0 lead in the fourth. Tawas added four more runs in the fifth and sixth innings.

McKenzie, Michelle Revord and Lyndsey Look each had two hits for Tawas.

Wren and Rouse had the Falcons' hits, while Kate Dombrowski took the loss, allowing five earned runs, walking four and striking out three.

The Falcons (13-8, 4-4 NEMC) were in a fourth-place tie with John Glenn in the league, just one game back of Standish-Sterling, Pinconning and Tawas (13-4, 5-3).