TUESDAY'S SCORES
@Murray State 6, Southern Illinois 4
Arkansas 6,
@Jacksonville State 2
MURRAY STATE 6, SOUTHERN ILLINOIS 4
MURRAY, Ky. - Small ball was the order of the day, as the Murray State softball team put up six hits and took advantage of six walks and two errors by Southern Illinois in Tuesday’s 6-4 win over the Salukis at Racer Field in Murray.
The Salukis (11-11-1) were first on the board in the contest in the third when Sydney Jones’ single turned into a run by Kaylyn Harker, who began the play at first, after two separate errors by the Racers (17-10). However, the Racers tied it in the bottom of the frame on an RBI walk from Jessica Twaddle, after SIU pitcher Savanna Dover loaded up the bases with no outs on a single from Alexa Becker and two walks from Erica Howard and Mo Ramsey.
Later in the bottom of the third, Becker scored on a bases loaded illegal pitch from Dover, followed by an RBI bunt from Jocelynn Rodgers to score Ramsey. Twaddle rounded out the scoring in the stanza when she was scored on a single from Shelbey Miller to make the score 4-1.
In the fifth inning, after leading off the frame with a double, Twaddle found her way home after the first of two SIU errors in the game, increasing the lead to 5-1. In the top of the sixth, Murray State pitcher Mason Robinson found herself in quite a jam, as the bases were loaded with just one out. However, the sophomore was able to escape unscathed after helping record the force out at home for the second out and striking out the next batter to end the inning.
MSU added an insurance run in the sixth, after Becker, who reached on a double, scored on a second Saluki error to cap MSU’s scoring at 6-1. In the seventh, after a walk and a single, SIU’s Sydney Jones went yard to cut the deficit to just two, at 6-4, in just one swing of the bat. Reliever J.J. Francis, however, was able to maintain her composure and get the next Saluki batter to pop out to end the game.
Becker led Murray State on the day by going a perfect 3-for-3 with a walk, a double and two runs, while Twaddle went 1-for-3 with a double, two runs and two RBIs.
Robinson moved to 8-3 on the year with the win by allowing one run on three hits with three strikeouts over six complete innings. Francis closed out the game for MSU and struck out two.
The Racers return to OVC action Saturday when they begin a three-game set at Eastern Illinois. First pitch for Saturday’s doubleheader and Sunday’s single game are both set for 1 p.m.
ARKANSAS 6, JACKSONVILLE STATE 2
JACKSONVILLE, Ala. - The Jacksonville State softball team had its eight-game winning streak snapped on Tuesday in a 6-2 loss to Arkansas at University Field.
Missed opportunities in the second and fifth innings doomed the Gamecocks (20-8) and lifted the Razorbacks (14-17) to the first win by a visiting team in University Field this season.
The Gamecocks loaded the bases with no outs in the second but couldn't push a run across and then saw fielding miscues early in the fifth spark a five-run inning for Arkansas.
Juniors Ella Denes and Cadi Oliver each went 2-for-3 in the middle of the JSU lineup, with Denes doubling twice and scoring a run. That run came on Oliver's one double, the back end of back-to-back two baggers in the sixth.
Arkansas rattled off nine hits, led by Tori Cooper's 3-for-3 outing at the plate. No one left the park, snapping a streak of eight-straight games with at least one homer for the Gamecock offense.
The Gamecocks threatened early, loading the bases with no outs in the bottom of the second, but three ground balls got Razorbacks ace Sydney Wright out of the inning without any damage on the scoreboard. She went on to retire nine in a row to put her offense in position to take the lead.
The Razorbacks got one across in the third to take a 1-0 lead and then broke it open with a five-run, five-hit fifth inning that also saw a pair of Gamecock errors in the field.
JSU got on the board in the home half of the fifth, when back-to-back singles from Savannah Sloan and Taylor Sloan set up a pair of ground outs from Emily Woodruff and Jordan Bullock that pushed one across and made it a 6-1 game.
JSU got one more in the sixth on back-to-back doubles from Denes and Oliver, but the Gamecocks couldn't draw any closer.
Wright (9-7) earned the win in the circle for the Razorbacks after allowing two runs on six hits through 5.1 innings. She walked two and struck out one before making way for Haley Meinen, who allowed one hit while recording the final four outs of the game.
Whitney Gillespie (7-3) suffered the loss for JSU after surrendering six runs on eight hits in five frames. She struck out three and walked one. Logan Green allowed a hit in two scoreless innings of relief that saw her strike out a pair and walk a pair.
The Gamecocks return to Ohio Valley Conference play on Saturday, when they start a three-game series with Tennessee State at University Field. The weekend will start with a 1 p.m. doubleheader on Saturday before wrapping up with a 1 p.m. single game on Sunday. Admission is free for JSU students and fans ages 18 and under. It will also be Military Appreciation Weekend, where all active military and veterans will receive free admission for them and their families at all three games.