Softball | 4/23/2014 10:13:00 PM
Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 McPherson, Kan. – With a pair of wins on Wednesday, the Lady Bulldogs proved who the top softball team in McPherson was as the 'Dogs went 4-0 with cross-town rival Central Christian College this year. MC moves to 16-21 on the season with just the conference tournament to play.
Game 1 – vs. Central Christian College – W 5-4 – 9 Innings
What started out as one of the shortest games of the year quickly turned lengthy as after four scoreless innings, the two clubs decided to start hitting. CCC put three up in the fifth and held a 3-1 lead heading into the final inning. Batting last, McPherson was able to bring around two in the seventh to force extras. Both teams hit around their ITB (International Tie Breaker) runner in the eighth but a costly error on the Lady Tigers in the ninth gave Mac the 5-4 victory.
The 'Dogs tallied 10 hits in their win and were led by Emily Davis (McPherson, Kan.) as she went 3-of-4 from the plate. Jenna Kaiser (Billings, Mont.) logged two knocks of the ball while five others had one; Makenzie Frank (East Galesburg, Ill.) tabbed the most vital RBI for McPherson as she hit in the tying runs in the bottom of the seventh.
Kaila Atkinson (Magnolia, Texas) pitched the first four innings for McPherson, picking up the no-decision; she gave up three earned runs on eight hits. Ciara Archer (Denver, Colo.) threw for the final five innings, earning her the win; she surrendered one earned run off of four hits while striking out four.
Game 2 – vs. Central Christian College – W 12-0 – 5 Innings
The second outing of the day was all McPherson as the 'Dogs shelled Central for a whopping 12 runs in four innings. The pitching of Archer held CCC to no runs and just three hits.
McKenna Deckard (Hutchinson, Kan.) had an impressive performance as she was a perfect 3-of-3 and scored all three times she made it aboard. Ariel McGee (Denver, Colo.) broke out of her hitting funk, going 2-of-3. Simone Donaldson (Halstead, Kan.), Cassandra Moreno (Wichita, Kan.) and Deckard each tabulated a home run in the team's win.
Archer threw 65 pitches to 20 Lady Tigers, retiring all but three; she logged three strikeouts in her four innings of work.
The 2014 KCAC Postseason Softball Tournament is next for the Dirt 'Dogs; the two-day, double elimination tournament is set to start May 1st and 2nd in Great Bend, Kansas. McPherson is scheduled to play Ottawa University on Thursday at 2:00 p.m. (CT)
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