With a spot in the NCAC Tournament still on the line, the Kenyon softball team continued its string of conference matches to close out its season, taking on Oberlin College on Saturday. The Owls dropped the first game of the doubleheader but, despite difficult weather conditions, pulled out a win in the second.

In game one, Kenyon struck first, as Brooke Avila ’27 singled to send Keala Montgomery ’27 home. In the second inning, Leah Schlissberg ’29 increased the Owls’ advantage with an RBI single to put Kenyon up 2-0. From there, however, it was all Oberlin, as the Yeowomen got the best of pitcher Kylie Hamm ’27 in the bottom of the second, scoring six runs before tacking on two more in the fourth. Jillian Messinger ’26 and Montgomery notched RBIs later in the game, but the early deficit was too much to overcome, and Kenyon dropped the first game 8-5.

In an interview with the Collegian, Montgomery shared that the time between matches in the doubleheader was a crucial reset for the Owls. “[There is] a lot of pep talk, because we know that we did not play to the best of our abilities, and so it’s going into the second game knowing that we have to show out like we know we can because you don’t want to leave the doubleheader that day feeling like you could have been way better,” she said.

The pep talk seemed to ignite something in Kenyon. On the very first at bat of game two, Montgomery got the Owls started on a high note with her third home run of the season to open the scoring. Reflecting on the start of the game, Montgomery attributed the leadoff home run to the Owls’ need for revenge. “I think we were all kind of going into the second game wanting a little bit of a get-back,” she said. “It was a fun way to start the second game, and I think it helped everybody go into it with a little more oomph.”

Montgomery kept the momentum going, scoring both Messinger and Madison Buckwalter ’26 on an RBI single before another RBI from Maeve McLaughlin ’26 put Kenyon up 4-0 in the second. Avila made a mark of her own in the next inning, with the Owls’ second home run of the day and her third of the season. 

Kenyon’s dominance continued in the fourth inning with an unearned run to go up 6-0. The Yeowomen did manage to chip away at the Owls’ advantage, but Kenyon stood firm on defense, closing out the game 6-4. First year Becca Boue ’29 pitched 5.2 innings for the Owls, not allowing a single run until the bottom of the fifth. 

Kenyon’s record currently stands at 17-19 (5-5 NCAC) and the Owls sit in fourth in the NCAC standings. With the postseason in reach, Montgomery says that advancing is always on the team’s mind. “I mean, obviously, I think our big goal is to make it to [the] conference tournament,” she said. “We’ve talked a lot this season about standing up there with the trophy, and it’s something that we haven’t done in my time here playing for Kenyon, and it’s something that we’re pretty close to achieving. I think it’s a real possibility.” 

Up next, Kenyon will take on Ohio Wesleyan University for its Senior Day on Saturday.