The No. 15 Missouri Western softball team (15-4) received two good pitching performances, but troubles in the field and at the plate held the Griffons to a split in its home opener against Quincy (5-10).
GAME 1: Quincy 3, Missouri Western 0
Jackie Bishop held the Hawks hitless through the first three innings, including striking out the first four batters she faced, but a three-run fourth gave Quincy all the runs it needed.
Monica Gray led off the top of the fourth with the Hawks firt hit of the game, which was followed by a Alanna Viken bunt. Bishop’s throw to first sailed high, and Viken moved to second base. Ashleigh Roscetti then singled to right field to bring Gray and Viken home, breaking the zero-all tie. Samantha O’Brien entered as a pinch-runner for Roscetti, and promptly stole second, then scored the Hawks’ third run on an Emma Topps single to left. Western failed to record the final out of the inning when Adriana Logobardi’s pop-fly to center bounced out of Kendall Sorensen’s glove.
Western was not able to mount much of a comeback threat against Quincy’s Lauren Francis (4-5). Francis picked up the win allowing just three Griffon hits, striking out nine and walking none in seven innings of work. Bishop (8-1) was credited with her first loss of the season despite going all seven innings, allowing four hits and striking out 10.
Sorensen picked up one hit for Western, with Keri Lorbert and Maegan Roemmich adding the other two.
GAME 2: Quincy 1, Missouri Western 2
Francis stymied the Griffon hitters again in game two, and Western’s Annalee Rubio matched the Hawks’ pitcher’s performance, but Maegan Roemmich’s two-out double in the bottom of the sixth vaulted the Griffons to a win.
Kendall Sorensen singled, then advanced to second on a Sarah Elliott sacrifice bunt in the sixth. Sorensen made it to third on Blair Stalder’s ground-out before Quincy intentionally walked Keri Lorbert to get to Roemmich. The intentional walk would bite the Hawks when Roemmich blasted a double to right center that brought Sorensen home for what would be the game-winning run.
Quincy struck first with a run in the second on another Griffon error. A throw to first, which would have been the second out of an inning-ending double play sailed wide which allowed Lauren Francis to reach second base and Emma Topps to score from second.
Western followed up with a run in the fourth, and this time a Quincy error was to blame. Lorbert reached first on an error by Samantha O’Brien that allowed Stalder to score from first. Rubio (5-3) shut down the Hawks from the second inning on, allowing just three hits in the game on five strikeouts and one walk.
Sorensen, Stalder and Roemmich each had a hit for Western.
The GriffonS open MIAA play with a trip to Southwest Baptist on Friday, March 9 for a double-header with the Bearcats. After another double billing at Central Missouri on the 10th, Western returns home for three-straight series beginning with Wayne State on the 14th.
— MWSU Sports Information —
Bishop LeBlond High School announced Tuesday that Steve Vertin will not return next year as boys’ basketball coach of the Eagles.
