Heartland softball battled two conference foes on Friday and Saturday at The Corn Crib, as the Hawks defeated Lincoln Land twice before falling to Danville Area in both contests of Saturday's doubleheader. The Hawks currently sit at 8-14 overall, and 3-7 in conference play.
 
Game 1
The Hawks opened Friday's doubleheader against Lincoln Land with a 6-4 victory over the Loggers. After Lincoln Land jumped-out in front first with a pair of runs in the second inning, Heartland responded in the bottom half with three tallies to take a 3-2 lead. After a single by Raeghan Morefield and a double by Amber Teimeyer, followed by a Bella Moser Walk, Morgan Malone lifted a sacrifice fly to left field to score Morefield. Danielle Bogle followed that with a base hit of her own to score a run, and ultimately scored later in the frame on an error by the Loggers. Run-scoring hits by Bogle, and Grace Wyman extended the Hawks' lead to 6-2 in the fourth. Lincoln Land would add two more runs in the fifth, but the pitching of the Hawks held strong in the win.
 
Game 2
Heartland continued the momentum into Friday's second game, as a late rally lifted the home team to a 9-6 victory. The Loggers got on the board first with two runs to open the contest. An Autumn Lage hit scoring Wyman narrowed the deficit to 2-1 after the first inning. After Lincoln Land added four more runs in the second, the Hawks again responded with 3 runs on 4 hits. Morefield, Sadie Christenson, Bogle and Wyman all contributed base-knocks in the inning to make it 6-4 in favor of the Loggers. Heartland would add one more in the third to make it 6-5. A Lage triple and Robinson double both scoring runs in the fifth gave the Hawks their first lead at 7-6. Bogle and Wyman added an RBI apiece in the sixth, as the Hawks swept the day over the Loggers. Malone received the win in relief, tossing a dominant 5 and 1/3 innings while allowing no runs on 3 hits.
 
Game 3
In the first game of Saturday's twin bill, four runs in the last two innings doomed the Hawks in an 8-5 loss to Danville Area. Heartland jumped on the board first with a pair of tallies in the opening frame. The Jaguars tied the contest at 2-2 before the Hawks added two more in the bottom of the second. After Danville Area again tied the contest in the third inning at 4-4, the Hawks scored once more to take a 5-4 advantage. Ultimately, the Jaguars would add a run in the sixth to once again tie the game, and three more in the seventh to take the opening game. Bogle led the charge for the Hawks, as she finished 3-3 with a run scored and an RBI.
 
Game 4
The Jaguars continued their hot stretch at the plate into game two, as they scored four runs in the opening inning to take an early 4-0 lead. The Hawks scored once in the second, another in the fourth and two more in the sixth in the loss. Teimeyer and Morefield each supplied two hits apiece for the Hawks, with Wyman, Downing, Lage and Robinson also getting in the hit column.
 
Heartland returns to action at 2 pm Tuesday, as the Hawks welcome Rock Valley College to The Corn Crib for a nonconference doubleheader.