St. Catharine, Ky. (Softball) – Following a pitcher's duel in game one – a 2-1 victory for St. Catharine College – the Shawnee State bats woke up in a big way, as the Bears collected nine hits and got a shutout performance from Miranda Pauley (JR/Portsmouth, Ohio) to grab an 8-0, five-inning victory over the Patriots on Friday afternoon at Salt River Electric Stadium.
The two squads will square off against Saturday in a doubleheader set for a noon start. The set will close out the Mid-South Conference road schedule for the Bears, who finish MSC play with four games versus Lindsey Wilson on Tuesday and Wednesday at Boone Coleman Field.
Game One
Shawnee State (11-27, 4-18 Mid-South) and St. Catharine (22-28, 8-18) combined for just six hits in the seven inning contest, as Morgan Conrad (SO/Circleville, Ohio) and Tiffany Wickline went toe-to-toe in the circle for much of the game.
Conrad came out on the losing end, surrendering a two-run home run to Wickline in the fourth inning, which proved to be the game winner. Conrad went six frames, allowing just three hits and the two earned runs while striking out one.
Along with her big fly, Wickline was more than effective on the mound, going six innings, allowing one run on two hits, a pair of walks and four strikeouts. Brittany McKee earned the save for the Patriots, working around a hit in the seventh to shut the door.
The Bears struck first in the contest in the third, when Tara Duncan (JR/Lancaster, Ohio) laced a two-out double to left-center. Heidi Hall (JR/Greenwich, Ohio) followed with a walk and Hannah Dittoe (SR/Pickerington, Ohio) singled to load the bases. Miranda Melvin (JR/Oak Hill, Ohio) delivered the RBI, drawing a walk to plate the first run of the game.
Game Two
It seemed another pitching battle was in store for the two squads, as Pauley and Jennifer Ortega battled through a scoreless first three frames.
Shawnee State struck first in the fourth, as Katlyn Gleich (FR/Grove City, Ohio) lifted a two-out single to right-center, plating pinch runner Megan Shupert (FR/West Portsmouth, Ohio), giving the Bears a 1-0 advantage after four complete.
The tight battle was no more following the top of the fifth, as Shawnee State plated seven runs on seven hits to take the big advantage. Pauley opened the inning with a walk and Duncan followed with a bunt single.
Following a sacrifice bunt from Hall and a walk to Dittoe to load the bases, Shupert executed a squeeze play to make it 2-0 with two outs in the frame. The Bears were far from done.
With runners now on second and third, Morgan McReynolds (SO/Covington, Ohio) cleared the bases with a two-RBI double – chasing Ortega, who was replaced by Lexi Fugate – and Jenna Crawford (SO/Franklin Furnace, Ohio) singled home a run to make it, 5-0. Mackenzie Riley (FR/Proctorville, Ohio) put a capper on it in the very next at-bat, launching the first pitch she saw over the center field wall to make it, 7-0.
Needing a run to force the five-inning mercy rule, Gleich kept the rally going with a single to left, and advanced to second on a stolen base. Gleich moved to third on a single from Pauley and scored when Duncan singled.
Pauley worked through a pair of errors in the bottom of the frame, closing out the shutout victory with a line out to second base.
Six SSU players combined for eight RBIs in the game, while seven players recorded at least one hit.
