WINONA LAKE, Ind. – Grace's softball team was unable to deal Marian its first league loss of the season as the Knights won twice.

Marian won both games 11-2 at Miller Field on Tuesday.

In the opening game, Marian's offense found a dangerous groove in the third inning. The Knights (18-4, 10-0 CL) led off the inning with home runs on back-to-back pitches and got its first four batters on base with hits. Grace had two errors in the inning, and the Knights capitalized with six runs. The Lady Lancers threatened to respond with the bases loaded, but their threat was neutralized with a pop out.

Marian ripped off three more runs in the fourth and two more in the fifth, scattering 15 hits in the five innings.

The Lady Lancers (12-11, 5-5 CL) tried to stave off the run-rule with a run in the fourth and fifth, but it was not enough. Samantha Johnson singled in Brittany Turner in the fourth inning, and Clarissa Knight scampered home on a wild pitch in the fifth.

Knight and Ashley Kleinbub were 2-for-3 from the plate. Grace had four errors in the contest and stranded seven runners on base.

Grace started much stronger in the second game. Freshman Chandler Elliott, who also was the starting pitcher, helped her own cause with a two-out, two-run homer over the left-field fence in the first inning.

Elliott kept the Knights off the scoreboard for the first three innings, but Marian bounced back to take the lead in the fourth. The Knights scored five runs off five hits in the inning.

Grace looked poised to score with the bases loaded and one out in the bottom of the fifth, but Marian escaped unscathed with two ground balls on the next two at-bats. Grace put another runner in scoring position in the sixth with one out, but two more ground balls ended a rally.

Marian tacked on four insurance runs in the top of the seventh to move ahead 9-2, and Grace was unable to mount a comeback in response.

Kleinbub and Morgan Hutcheson were each 2-for-3 to lead Grace's offense, and Johnson and Elliott were each 1-for-3.

The Lady Lancers continue league play on Thursday at home against Huntington at 3 p.m.