CONWAY, Ark. – The Morehead State Softball team dropped a pair of games in its final day of play at Michelle Short Memorial Classic at Farris Field on Sunday.
The Eagles were setback 13-2 (5inn) by Southern Miss (7-3) in the days first tilt before a 10-2 (5inn) defeat by host Central Arkansas (10-4).
Junior utility slugger
Alexis Strother again paced the team from the plate as she launched her second home run of the 2020 season and went a combined 3-for-4 from the plate with a walk. In the circle, rookie right-hander
Kelsey Perkins finished tossed three scoreless frames to finish the Eagles' eventual loss to the Sugar Bears.
Morehead State is now 3-5 overall for the 2020 season and will return to play on Saturday in the Hampton Classic. In the two-day, four-game event, the Eagles will play Howard and Norfolk State in Norfolk, Va., at NSU Softball Field on Saturday before crossing the Chesapeake Bay to Hampton, Va., where they will once again meet the Bison before closing the weekend against the host Lady Pirates.
2020 SCHEDULE
MOREHEAD STATE 2, SOUTHERN MISS 13 (5inn) - BOX SCORE
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Golden Eagles got on the board first after two-out wild pitch by senior
Randi Hamilton allowed USM's Madison Rayner to advance to third before being scored on an RBI-single by Amber Pack
- Following a three-up-three-down second frame by Hamilton in the circle, Southern Miss found its swing and touched the righty up for three runs via two-run home runs off the bats Sumerlin and Pack.
- Strother along with Freshman righty
Carolyn Alincic entered in relief for MSU following the second homer, however the Golden Eagles continued to make contact as they crossed home for two-more runs.
- In the fourth inning, Strother tried to begin a rally for Morehead State as she led of the frame by crushing her second dinger of the year over the left-center field wall. Sophomore
Peyton Rose and senior
Lindsay Anderson both singled later in the inning but were left stranded.
-USM closed the game with a run in the bottom half of the fourth before envoking the run-rule in the fifth off a grand slam by Pack.
KEY STATS
- Stother went 2-for-2 with a walk at the plate while driving in her fifth RBI and second home run of the season.
- Rose also posted a 2-for-2 outing with the bat and notched her first double of the season. The second-year third baseman is now batting from the right side of the plate after seeing pitches as a lefty last season.
- In the circle for MSU, Hamilton (2-1) suffered her first loss of the season after starting and tossing 2 and one-third innings while Strother, Alincic, and Perkins also saw action.
- Southern Miss' 13-run game was led by Pack who went 4-for-4 and drove in seven runs on her two home runs.
- USM pitcher Kaylan Lander struck out seven batters in five-innings to get the win.
MOREHEAD STATE 2, CENTRAL ARKANSAS 10 (5inn) - BOX SCORE
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Hamilton's second start of the day began with a double, wild pitch, walk, and then a two-run RBI double by Sugar Bears' Kaylan Shepherd. UCA went ahead 3-0 in the frame a two-out RBI single by Reagen Sperling.
- Morehead State answered in the second when Strother led off with walk, advanced to second on a groundout, and to third on a single by junior
Helyna Bissell. Freshman utility
Brianna Walker entered to pinch run for Strother and crossed the plate on a double-steal to make it a 3-1 game
- In the home half of the second, Central Arkansas tallied seven runs thanks to four hits and two MSU errors.
- Perkins, a Lancaster, Ky., native entered in relief duty with one runner aboard and no outs in the second inning. The rookie managed to roll back-to-back groundouts before a single got across the unearned runner. Perkins finished inning with a pop out before conceding just two hits over the remaining two innings.
- The Eagles pushed a final run across in the fifth as Anderson single to left-center field and advanced to third on back-to-back walks worked by freshman
Kaylin Silcox and sophomore
Maddie Kawall. The senior crossed home plate when freshman
Madeline Gailor hit into a 6-5-3 double-play.
KEY STATS
- Morehead State totaled four hits and four walks. Bissell's second-inning knock was her first hit of 2020. Sophomore catcher
Peyton Slater turned in the team's lone extra-base knock with a leadoff double in the fourth.
- Shepard led the Sugar Bears' bats with three RBI. Third baseman Cylla Hill went 1-for-3 and drive in three runs on the game's only homer run.
-Hamilton (2-2) suffered the defeat after allowing six runs (five earned) in one inning.
- Perkins tossed the final three frames and conceded no runs on three hits and two walks while also striking out a batter. The rookie has now twice tossed at least three scoreless innings in two of her five appearances this season
- Jordan Johnson grabbed the win for Central Arkansas in the circle with a four-inning start which allowed all four MSU hits and two runs.
Follow Morehead State Softball on Twitter using the handle
@MSUEaglesSB
