RIPON, Wis. – A two-inning trip to Ripon College was worthwhile for Cornell's softball team, which claimed a pivotal 5-4 Midwest Conference victory Wednesday at Tracy Field in completion of Game 2 that was suspended on April 13.
 
The Rams (11-18 overall, 3-7 MWC) earned a series split against Ripon (9-19 overall, 6-4 MWC) and kept their postseason hopes alive with six league games to go.
 
Wednesday's contest picked up with the score 4-4 to start the sixth inning. The Rams loaded the bases with one out in the sixth before Ripon escaped the jam.
 
The score remained tied going into the seventh, when Corrin Kennedy put the Rams back in business with a one-out single. She advanced to second on a Lilly Dierkes walk and moved to third on a wild pitch.
 
Sophomore Linnea Drever plated Kennedy with the go-ahead run on a fielder's choice grounder to shortstop.
 
Ripon's leadoff batter reached in the bottom of the seventh, but was quickly erased by Kennedy on a caught stealing second.
 
Cornell pitcher Hannah Rhoades (6-5) retired the final two batters to secure her complete-game victory. She limited the Red Hawks to four hits over seven innings.
 
The Rams racked up 14 total hits, including a pair of doubles by Drever who finished with two RBIs. Addie Bowman, Kloi Barney and Kennedy tallied two hits apiece. Kennedy scored twice.
 
Coming up – Cornell travels to play Grinnell (9-23 overall, 6-4 MWC) Saturday for a 1 p.m. doubleheader in Grinnell.