SHAWNEE, Okla. – SWOSU Softball avoided the series sweep at the hands of Oklahoma Baptist on Saturday thanks to a 2-1 win over the Bison in the series finale. The bounce back came following an 8-4 loss in the day's opener.
The Bulldogs (7-9, 2-4 GAC) will break from conference play Tuesday (March 4) with a road trip to Wichita to face Newman in a doubleheader. They'll then continue their gauntlet run through the start of conference play when they host reigning GAC Tournament champion Southern Nazarene next weekend in Weatherford.
Game One
OBU 8, SWOSU 4
Four Bison home runs doomed the Dawgs in Saturday's opener. SWOSU hit two of their own to get back into the game, but eight runs produced by OBU proved to be too many to overcome in the loss.
Oklahoma Baptist scored the game's first six runs in two at-bats, using three extra-base hits to do so including a pair of two-run home runs.
Kaylee Barkley answered back in the third inning when she sent her first home run of the season over the fence – a three-run bomb to cut SWOSU's deficit in half.
Shallen Mershon followed up an inning later with a solo shot of her own, as the final run to cross for SWOSU in the game.
With SWOSU now trailing 6-4, the Bison used a pair of solo home runs in the fourth for insurance. The Dawgs could not get a base runner from the fifth inning on.
Hannah Nieuwenhuis suffered the loss in the circle. Bakley threw more than two innings of relief.
Riley Lusk did not allow a run in 2.0 innings after Barkley.
Jadyn Hook and
Chesnie Hewitt both had multi-hit games. Hook doubled and scored a run.
Game Two
SWOSU 2, OBU 1
Alexis Taylor gave SWOSU six strong innings pitching and got just enough offense to salvage the series in game three. Taylor struck out 11 and held the Bison scoreless until a solo home run in the seven inning finally forced a pitching a chance.
Katie Boline executed a safety squeeze in the top of the first to scratch the first run across and delivered an RBI single in the third. Her hit nearly produced another run, but a throw from the left fielder cut down
Jadyn Hook trying to score from second base.
Leading 2-0, Taylor was locked in. She surrendered two hits in the first two innings and went on to face one more than the minimum from the third inning through the sixth. Her only baserunner during that span? A strikeout that reached base following a passed ball.
OBU finally broke through on the scoreboard in the seventh, chasing Taylor.
Jaycee McKee entered and earned her fourth save of the season.
Jadyn Hook and
Chesnie Hewitt both led the lineup for a second straight game. This time it was Hewitt who doubled. Hook scored another run. Boline was the producer with both RBIs in the contest.
