Columbia, Ky. – Shawnee State softball fell twice on the road on Friday evening, losing to #11 Lindsey Wilson 7-3 in game one and 11-5 in game two.
The Bears would get on the board first in the top of the second inning. Tara Duncan (SR/Lancaster, Ohio) would reach second base on a throwing error by Amy Rogers. Duncan would then score on Katlyn Gleich (SO/Grove City, Ohio)'s RBI single.
The Blue Raiders would respond in the bottom of the third. Cassie Kooker would score on an error by Haley Rawlins (FR/South Point, Ohio), and Rogers would make up for her previous error by singling home Sydney Fourman. Lindsey Wilson would add one run in the bottom of the fifth on Sydney Fourman's solo home run.
Down 3-1 in the top of the sixth, Shawnee State would rally to tie the game. Kayla Koch (JR/Lucasville, Ohio) would hit a two-run home run to left field to tie the score 3-3 with two outs. However, Lindsey Wilson would immediately respond, scoring four runs in the bottom of the sixth, including solo home runs by Kooker and Fourman.
Casey Bryan would throw seven innings, allowing three runs on four hits, only two of which were earned, and striking out eight to earn the win. Brooke Blevins (FR/Frankfort, Ohio) would go six innings, allowing seven runs on 13 hits in the loss.
Shawnee State would again strike early for a 1-0 lead in game two. Marisa Brown (SO/Liberty Township, Ohio) would single home Ashtyn Saunders (FR/Lancaster, Ohio) with one out in the top of the first. However, the lead would be short lived as Lindsey Wilson would strike for four in the first and three in the second. Amber Foukes would hit two three-run home runs in these two frames.
The Bears would rally for two runs in the fourth. Mackenzie Riley (SO/Proctorville, Ohio) would hit a solo home run to lead off the inning, and Haley Rawlins would bunt in Katie Wolsefer (FR/Franklin, Ohio). After Lindsey Wilson rallied for two more runs in the bottom of the fourth, Shawnee State would rally for another run when Miranda Melvin (SR/Oak Hill, Ohio) singled home Tara Duncan. Koch would single home Ashtyn Saunders in the fifth to end the scoring.
Taylor Slade would allow two runs on eight hits in relief to earn the win for Lindsey Wilson. Miranda Pauley (SR/Portsmouth, Ohio) had a rough outing, allowing seven runs on six hits in only 1.2 innings to get the loss for Shawnee State.
With the losses, Shawnee State falls to 12-11 on the season and are 6-8 in the Mid-South Conference. Lindsey Wilson improves to 24-7 and are 10-0 in the league. The losses drop Shawnee State to fourth place in the league, where the Bears sit behind Georgetown.
Shawnee State and Lindsey Wilson conclude their series on Saturday afternoon with a doubleheader. First pitch of game one is scheduled for 12:00pm Eastern time.
