CLAREMORE, Okla. - The Rogers State softball team split a doubleheader with Grand View on Sunday afternoon at Hillcat Complex to take the four game series.
The Hillcats gave up eight runs in the top of the sixth and the Viking came away with a 10-6 victory in game one. RSU responded in the nightcap as they cruised to a 9-2 victory. The Hillcats took the four-games series after sweeping the Saturday doubleheader against the Vikings.
GAME ONE
Grand View used eight runs in the sixth inning to overcome the Hillcats 10-6 in the opener.
RSU dented the scoreboard first as Katrina Loy led off the second inning with a first-pitch home run over the left field fence.
The Vikings knotted the score in the top of the third. However, the Hillcats answered with back-to-back home runs for the second consecutive day. Senior Logan Zamora belted a two-run bomb and Amanda Edwards followed with a solo shot to give the Cats a 4-1 edge.
Grand View cut RSU's lead in half with a lead-off home run by Ryan Jehle in the fourth. RSU pushed its lead to 5-2 with an RBI single by Katie Bointy in the fifth.
The Viking took over in the sixth with an eight-run inning. Emily Gilbert led off with a solo home run. Grand View then received some help from the Hillcat defense as they committed three errors that allowed two runs to score. The Viking capitalized on the Cats blunders as Anna Arnold followed with a two-run homer. McKenzie Cason doubled to plate the sixth run of the inning and Gilbert rounded out the scoring as she ripped her second home run of the inning over the center field fence.
The Hillcats cut the deficit to 10-6 in the bottom half of the inning as Edwards crushed her second home run of the day over the left field fence.
The Cats retired the side in the top of the seventh and sparked a rally in the bottom of the inning however, it was quickly quieted. With runners on first and second and no outs Shelby Brogdon belted a home run to put the Cats back in the game. Upon review, Brogdon was called out and the runners were returned to first and second because Brogdon was not reentered prior to her at bat. The Vikings retired the next two hitters and recorded the win.
Ashley Wailand (3-1) suffered her first loss in the circle as she allowed 10 runs, four earned, on 12 hits with one strikeout.
GAME TWO
The Hillcats battled back in the nightcap as they used nine hits to come away with a 9-2 victory.
The Viking opened the game with a run in the top of the first. The Hillcats matched the run in the bottom half of the inning as Edwards scored on a Grand View error after doubling earlier in the inning.
Grand View regained the lead with one run in the top of the third however; it was the last time the Vikings would lead in the game. In the bottom of the third, Linsey Curtis doubled down the left field line and sent Ashlie Fauchier across home plate. Katrina Loy followed with a single off the wall in center field allowing Edwards and Curtis to score. Angelina Vines plated the Cats final run of the inning off a Brogdon groundout, giving RSU a 5-2 lead.
Edwards belted a two-run homer in the fourth to increase RSU's lead to 7-2. The Cats tact on a pair of insurance runs in the fifth and held the Viking scoreless over the final two innings.
Edward (4-0) recorded the win in the circle for the Cats. The sophomore tossed the complete game, allowing two runs on eight hits with two strikeouts. The right-handed pitcher also excelled on offense as she ended the afternoon with three home runs. She was 3-for-3 in the night cap and drove in four runs in the doubleheader.
Rogers State (7-1) returns to action at the Hillcat Complex on Tuesday evening as the host Langston University in a twin bill. First pitch is set for 6 p.m.
