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HOUGHTON — After four straight losses against tough opponents on the road, the Houghton Gremlins returned home Saturday looking to bounce back.

They fell behind in the first inning of both games of a doubleheader against the Marquette Sentinels, but stormed back each time to earn wins, 5-1 and 9-4, at the Houghton High School field.

Gremlins coach Mel Baker’s team lost games to Wisconsin schools Pulaski and Menasha the previous weekend and then both games of a doubleheader on Friday at Gladstone.

Marquette’s Charlye Swajanen pitches during the first game of a high school softball doubleheader played against Houghton on Saturday at the Houghton High School field. (Houghton Daily Mining Gazette photo by Daver Karnosky)

So she really wanted her team to see each of the losses as a chance to learn.

“We’ve had some good competition the last six games, or however many it is, but it wears on you when you’re playing against a good team, and a good team, and a good team, and you get a loss after a loss,” the coach said. “But, like I told my girls, it’s stepping stones. We have to learn from the losses. We can’t look at it as a loss. It’s learning to grow.

“I think they proved that in this game (Saturday), that they learned a little bit from the last few games, and they grew a little bit. Our defense was airtight, and our bats finally woke up. So it was good to see.”

While the Sentinels (9-10) may not have had the type of recent success that Gladstone has had over the years, they came out Saturday looking to prove that the team that had won just six games over the previous five seasons has already taken big strides in the right direction on its road to improvement.

Marquette head coach Derek Swajanen was excited for the way his team started both games Saturday.

Marquette second baseman Sammi Trapani catches a pop-up fly ball during the first game of a high school softball doubleheader played against Houghton on Saturday at the Houghton High School field. (Houghton Daily Mining Gazette photo by Daver Karnosky)

“We’ve been struggling a little bit getting out of the first inning with a lead, and this is a young team,” he said. “I mean, you have a freshman throwing. She did a great job, but, you know, they’ve won six games in five years or something like that, maybe a few more. So we wanted to tighten up our defense.

“We’re just lacking a little bit in offense right now, and we’ll find the right pieces, and we’ll keep working on that all week…. You hate the results, but you have to trust the process of where we’re trying to go.”

First baseman Halle Haynes got things started in the opening game for Marquette by drawing a walk from Houghton pitcher Stella Soumis to lead off the top of the first inning. Two batters later, Haynes scored when Charlye Swajanen doubled to left field.

It did not take the Gremlins (9-6) long to answer. Shortstop Clea Ollanketo singled to lead off the bottom of the first. After first baseman Romi Mattson drew a walk, center fielder Kenzie Collard grounded out as Ollanketo scored to even it 1-1.

Mattson then scored when third baseman Fayah Zapolnik grounded out.

The game remained 2-1 Houghton until the bottom of the fourth, when Zapolnik led off with a single. Soumis drilled a fly ball to deep center field, and after Sentinels center fielder Grace Sandstrom couldn’t come up with the catch, Zapolnik scored and Soumis reached second. Two batters later, HHS catcher Lexi Burns tripled to deep left field to score Soumis.

In the fifth, Collard sparked the Gremlins again with a two-out single to center. Zapolnik then singled, also to center, which brought Collard home and capped the game’s scoring.

Soumis earned the win for Houghton, going seven innings on the rubber, striking out six, walking three and scattering four hits.

Baker is proud of the leadership Soumis is beginning to show through her approach to her starts.

“Stella has improved,” Baker said. “She was hitting her spots today, and she’s starting to lead the team really well.”

In taking the pitching loss, MSHS freshman Charlye Swajanen was also strong, striking out 12, walking three and giving up six hits over six innings. Her father beamed talking about her performance.

“Charlye, I think she struck out 12 in six innings. Not bad for a freshman,” Derek Swajanen said. “I think she’s leading the state in strikeouts as a freshman, and she’s doing a great job.

“She does a great job getting ahead 0-2 or 1-2, and then she gets really impatient and gets some hittable balls up in the zone. That’s frustrating, not only as a coach, but as a dad.”

In the second game, the Sentinels again jumped out to a lead, this time 2-0 in the top of the first thanks to a Haynes leadoff triple, a Charlye Swajanen single to left and sacrifice by second-game hurler Cece Fuller.

Houghton could not solve Fuller in the pitcher’s circle until the bottom of the third.

That’s when Houghton’s Dani Williston walked to lead off, while Ollanketo and Mattson each reached on errors, though Williston was thrown out trying to score.

Collard then doubled to center field, which brought Ollanketo and Mattson home and evened the game 2-2. Collard then scored when Soumis singled to left field.

The Gremlins broke the game open the following inning by scoring five times as Burns, Williston, Ollanketo, Collard and Zapolnik all crossed home plate.

The Sentinels bounced back with a pair of runs in the top of the sixth as Eva Dewitt and Ady Trapani scored on a single by Sammi Trapani, cutting Houghton’s lead to 8-4, though they wouldn’t get closer.

The home squad added one more run in a rain-soaked sixth when Ollanketo singled to center and scored two batters later on a double play.

Fuller took the loss, striking out five, walking three and giving up nine hits. Despite the loss, her coach was happy with her performance.

“Cece did a great job,” Derek Swajanen said. “You know, she’s around the plate. She doesn’t throw super hard, but she moves the ball around. She’s got spin on it.”

He was also happy that both of his pitchers kept the free passes to a minimum.

“Just a handful of walks, I think, between them,” he said. “They did a great job.”

The issue for Marquette in the second game became leaving runners on base. In the third, Charlye Swajanen singled, followed by Fuller and Layla Roman drawing walks to load the bases. Mattson then forced Dewitt to fly out and then struck out Ady Trapani to end the threat.

An injury to Houghton’s Reagan Moyle early in the season created an opportunity for Mattson, a sophomore, to step in and take over the second starting pitcher’s role, and she continues to get better with every start, according to Baker.

“Our junior pitcher (Moyle), first game ofa the season, broke her hand (on a) line drive,” Baker said. “So stepping into this (No.) 2 spot all of a sudden, it’s been a big step for (Mattson), but she has just taken it in stride.

“She can buckle down when she needs to. She’s a competitor.”

Mattson finished Game 2 with five strikeouts, four walks and seven hits in seven innings to earn the win.

The Sentinels have a trio of doubleheaders this week, hosting Gladstone at 4 p.m. Wednesday, traveling to Westwood at 4 p.m. Friday and entertaining Houghton at noon Saturday.