Softball | 4/28/2012 10:11:00 PM
Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2
McPherson, Kan. – In the final series of the regular season and on Senior Day, the McPherson College softball team squared off against the Lady Falcons of Friends University. Friends came away with both of the victories on Saturday, 3-7 and 6-7, ending the Lady Bulldogs five-game winning streak.
McPherson finished the regular season 15-23 overall and .500 in the conference at 9-9. The Bulldogs are tied for fifth, heading into the KCAC post-season tournament.
Game One: McPherson 3 – Friends 7
Box Score
In the opening game of the day, Friends jumped out to a 4-0 lead after two and a half innings before MC finally got on the board thanks to a bottom of the third, two-run homerun by senior, Janie Gunther. McPherson scored the next run of the game in the fifth, pulling within one run at 3-4 but a three-run sixth inning for the Falcons, gave Friends the victory 7-3.
The Lady Bulldogs had one of their more successful hitting days on Saturday, putting the ball in play 17 total times. In game one, they recorded seven hits, with senior Taylor Medler, McKenna Deckard and Gunther putting up two runs apiece. Senior Kristen Gustafson was the other McPherson player with a hit in the first contest. Gunther also led the team in RBIs with two, both coming from her third inning homerun.
Allison Love logged her 17
th complete game of the year, allowing seven earned runs off of 11 hits and one walk. She tallied four pop outs, six groundouts and a season-high five strikeouts in the game.
Friends University was led by Tara Steinbach from behind the plate with three hits. Four Falcons had two hits while two others grabbed one.
A complete game was earned by Kelsey Garner for Friends who surrendered three earned runs, seven hits and one walk in her seven innings.
Game Two: McPherson 6 – Friends 7
Box Score
The final game of the regular season started off the opposite of the first with McPherson jumping out to a quick 5-0 lead after two innings. Unfortunately for MC, a seven-run fourth inning by the Lady Falcons put them up 7-5. The Bulldogs got one run back in the bottom of the inning but couldn’t score any runs in the fifth, sixth or seventh, ending the game on the wrong side of a 5-7 score.
For the second straight game, Gunther led MC in hits, going 3-of-4 with two singles and a two-run homerun shot in the second inning. Katie Logan and Courtney Shald each contributed two hits in the final regular season game of their McPherson College career. Three other Lady Bulldogs put the ball into play in game two.
In her fourth complete game of the season, Kaci Nichols allowed seven runs, five earned, eight hits and six walks. She struck out three, forced five fly outs and two groundouts.
Three Lady Falcons earned two hits in the last game of the day and two others had one.
Friends went through three pitchers in game two, starting off with Hannah Shuck who only lasted the opening inning, giving up three runs off of three hits. Garner came in to replace Shuck in the top of the second and pitch three innings, surrendering three earned runs from seven hits. She was relieved in the top of the fifth by Alyssa Hughes who closed out the game. Hughes threw 44 pitches in her three innings, not allowing any hits or runs.
Both teams now await the creation of the 2012 KCAC Championship bracket. The tournament is scheduled to take place May 2
nd and 3
rd in Hutchinson, Kan.
