Softball takes one of four games in Arkansas
The team now waits until March for their next set of games in Florida for spring ball
John Laforest
Staff Writer
The Minnesota State softball team had a tough set of games, as the team dropped three of four games on the weekend, that ended with a pair of losses Sunday after splitting their pair of games Saturday.
The Mavericks split a pair of games Saturday, defeating Northwest Missouri State, 8-7, on a walk-off, before falling to Washburn, 6-3.
The team on Sunday later fell to Arkansas Tech, 14-4, in five innings and then came up short against Central Missouri in a close 2-0 matchup on Sunday.
In the team’s first game, the squad was down 7-4 against Northwest Missouri State, until the Mavericks rallied back, which was sparked by a double to left center off the bat of sophomore catcher Emma Shifferle.
Junior third-baseman Kennedy Rieck later in the inning brought Schifferle home on a sac fly.
Down by one run, with one out, senior outfielder McKenzie Paap took advantage of an errant throw from the shortstop which scored sophomore outfielder Courtney Potter and freshman second baseman Kayla Moky, to earn Minnesota State the nail biting walk-off win.
Minnesota State finished its day with a 6-3 loss to the Washburn Ichabods.
Sophomore pitcher Mackenzie Ward (2-2) took the loss in the game. Ward allowed six runs in six innings, while striking out seven.
The Mavericks struck first, scoring three runs in the top of the first inning when sophomore infielder Torey Richards hit Paap home with a single, then senior catcher Cori Kennedy doubled Richards home, before freshman Hannah Hastings reached on an error, sending Kennedy home.
The Ichabods got a run back in the fifth, and in the sixth inning rallied to score five runs on a string of hits, taking the 6-3 lead they would ultimately win with after the Mavericks couldn’t muster another late rally.
Sunday, MSU began the day with a 14-4 loss to Arkansas Tech.
Ward (2-3) took the loss again, allowing nine runs, four of them earned, in three innings. Senior pitcher Megan Goodnight (3-0) started for Arkansas Tech, allowing five hits and four runs in 4.1 innings, and earning the win.
The Mavericks found success in the top half of the fifth with key RBIs from Schifferle and Kennedy, cutting the lead to 11-4, but unfortunately it wasn’t enough as the team lost once again.
Minnesota State finished its day with a 2-0 loss to the Central Missouri Jennies.
The Mavericks threatened in the seventh inning, when Paap singled then stole second before Moky was walked.
Junior outfielder Carly Esselman, with runners on first and second with two out, grounded out to first base to give the Jennies the win.
Minnesota State will take next weekend off before traveling to Clermont, Florida for the NTC Spring games, a series of ten games over the course of six days.
Feature photo courtesy of Maverick Athletics.