The Laurier Golden Hawks Softball team took to the road for Week 2 of the 2026 season. Their Saturday games with Windsor were moved to Friday night in Dutton, midway between the two schools, as the forecast looked very unfavourable for Saturday.
The Laurier offense, which had been sharp in Week 1, wasted no time putting up 2 runs in the top of the first inning led by singles from Millie Blamauer and Kendall Rainey. Blamauer has had a great start to the season and earned OUS Offensive Player of the Week for Week 1. Maryn Partridge started in the circle for Laurier and gave up a single run in the bottom of the first on a pair of Lancer's hits. Amy Hughes led off the second inning with an inside-the-park home run, followed by an Ella Shantz double, a Blamauer triple, and singles by Zoe Ramkalawan, Maddy Halstead, and Rainey to open a 6-1 lead. Laurier would continue to add runs to the total, scoring a single run in the third and then four more in the fourth inning powered by a pair of doubles by Chloe Vander Byl and Hughes towards an 11-1 final score in favour of Laurier.
Windsor opened the scoring in the second game of the doubleheader, taking an early 1-0 lead off starting pitcher Cassie Dollard. Laurier tied it in the bottom of the second on a Hughes single and a Windsor error. Senior Natalie Donelle led off the bottom of the third with a bunt single, advanced to second on a stolen base, and came around to score on a groundout to give Laurier a 2-1 lead.
Laurier maintained the narrow lead until the bottom of the 5th inning, when six straight Golden Hawk hits by Halstead, Addi Nugent, Jules Merritt, Hughes, Annika Pocock and Liv Faulhafer extended the lead to 5-1. Windsor clawed back in the top of the 6th to come within one run at 5-4. The Golden Hawks added to their lead in the bottom of the 6th, adding three more runs on Ramkalawan and Halstead singles and a Hughes triple. Reliever Autumn Hachey kept the Windsor squad scoreless in the top of the 7th to preserve the Laurier win.
Sunday saw the Golden Hawks returning to home territory for their first home games of the year at Waterloo Park against the McMaster Marauders. As has been the pattern in much of the early season, Laurier got on the scoreboard first. A walk and a pair of singles combined with a triple by Amy Hughes gave the Golden Hawks an early three-run lead. Four more singles in the second inning would add another run to make it 4-0 Laurier. In the bottom of the third, the Golden Hawks would add three more runs on singles by Lauren Artt and Addi Nugent, followed by a Blamauer triple and a Halstead double. Starting Pitcher Cassie Dollard was very solid in the circle, scattering just three hits and no walks while striking out five through 3.1 innings. Reliever Lily Wynberg continued the solid pitching, allowing just a single hit through 1.2 innings to complete the 7-0 Laurier win.
In Game Two, the Golden Hawks would jump out to an early 4-0 lead in the top of the first inning on four Laurier hits and a McMaster error. Maryn Partridge started for Laurier in Game Two and allowed just one hit through three innings. The Golden Hawks kept adding runs as a Liv Faulhafer triple and a Hughes home run powered a five-run 3rd inning to give Laurier a 10-0 lead. McMaster would get on the board with three runs in the bottom of the 4th to extend the game into the fifth, but Partridge would return to the circle for a scoreless bottom of the 5th, giving Laurier its 6th straight victory.
With the weekend wins, Laurier improves to 7-1 and the best record in the OUS. The Golden Hawks have a busy weekend ahead as they take on Guelph at home at Hillside Park, then travel to St. Catharines to battle Brock on Saturday and wrap up on Sunday in Hamilton playing McMaster again.
