MONTICELLO, Ark. - Following their doubleheader sweep over Harding last week, the Arkansas Tech softball team splits the doubleheader with Arkansas-Monticello to open the three-game road series. The Cotton Blossoms picked up the 4-1 win in the opening game of the day, while the Golden Suns took game two in a dominant 9-0 mercy rule win to tie the weekend series at one game a piece. Following today's games, the Golden Suns are 15-11 overall and are 6-4 against Great American Conference opponents.
GAME ONE
Arkansas Tech got things started right away as
Shelby Chavers busted a leadoff single to second base.
Tymber Riley followed with a single of her own to left field putting Chavers on second. Following a strikeout by
Makenzie Goins,
Caitlyn Wells hit the third single of the inning to left field and load the bases with just one outs. The Cotton Blossoms managed to escape any fatal early damage by the Golden Suns as they struck out the next two hitters to send in their offense. Arkansas-Monticello would not produce any runs in the opening inning of play.
The Golden Suns would stay quiet on the offensive end through the top of the fourth inning, but the Cotton Blossoms would strike the first scoring blow of the game in the bottom of the fourth. Two straight walks and a hit by pitch set up a bases loaded opportunity with two outs for Arkansas-Monticello. They took full advantage of the opportunity with a double to score two runs, then followed up with a single to score two more to take a 4-0 lead heading into the fifth inning of play.
Kassie Mayberry would deliver a solid double to right center field to give the Golden Suns a good start to the top of the fifth inning. With the runner still on second base, Riley would smash a double down the left field line to bring Mayberry around third and into home for the run to make it a 4-1 game as the Cotton Blossoms still controlled the lead. This would be the only run the Golden Suns would manage to put on the board as Arkansas-Monticello would hold them for the rest of the game to take the 4-1 game one win.
Starting in the circle for the Golden Suns was
Bailey Buffington who drops to 5-4 on the season after picking up the loss. Buffington pitched 3.2 innings and recorded 5 strikeouts in that time.
Maddy Prough replaced Buffington in the circle for the final out in the bottom of the fourth where she stayed for the remainder of the inning picking up a strikeout in that time. Replacing Prough to start the bottom of the 5th inning was Wells who would close the game for the Golden Suns in the circle. Wells collected one strikeout in her 2.0 innings of work.
GAME TWO
Neither team managed to find a run in the first two innings of play as the Golden Suns came back to bat to start the top of the third inning. Chavers sent out the first hit of the inning with a single to left field, then followed by stealing second base as Riley continued her at-bat. Riley delivered a single to center field, advancing to second and scoring Chavers to pick up the RBI to give the Golden Suns a 1-0 lead.Â
The hot hitting became contagious as Wells crushed the third consecutive single to left field and put Riley on third as Mayberry approached the plate. At this point there wasn't anything that was going to stop the hot Golden Sun bats as Mayberry hit the fourth consecutive single into left field to advance Wells to second and collect the RBI as Riley touched home plate to give the Golden Suns a 2-0 lead. The final punch of the inning came in a big way as Goins demolished a three-run bomb over the left-center wall to extend the lead to 5-0 as the Golden Suns headed into the bottom of the frame.
The Cotton Blossom offense was unable to respond with anything keeping the game at a 5-0 lead for the Golden Suns heading into the top of the fourth inning of play. Once again, the bats were hot for Tech in the top of the fourth as
Savannah Snow crushed the second homerun of the game over the left field wall. Chavers and Riley followed with singles and Wells sent a double out to center field to score Chavers and advance Riley to third to give the Golden Suns a 7-0 lead.
Still in the top of the fourth inning, both Wells and Riley would advance on a wild pitch putting Wells on third and scoring Riley. Mayberry would walk and advance to second on a wild pitch putting two runners in scoring position with just one out. Goins hit a sacrifice flyout to center field that scored Wells to record the final run of the game for the Golden Suns as they took a 9-0 lead in the top of the fourth inning, putting them in the five-inning mercy rule territory.
The Cotton Blossoms managed to get a couple hitters on base but couldn't capitalize any on base. Following an error by the Arkansas-Monticello third baseman that got
Jessica Williams to first base in the top of the fifth inning, both Chavers and Riley recorded the final two hits of the day for the Golden Suns with a pair of single as they headed into the bottom of the fifth inning looking to close out the game. Finishing out the game for the Golden Suns in the circle was
Kaila Cartwright who picked up two strikeouts and put a ground ball in play to successfully close the game and give the Golden Suns the 9-0 mercy rule win in game two.
Starting in the circle for the Golden Suns was
Shannon Lasey who collected four strikeouts and allowed only a single hit in her 4.0 innings of work. Lasey picked up the win and moves to 5-4 overall on the season.
UP NEXT
The Golden Suns will look to take the series win over Arkansas-Monticello on the road in the final game tomorrow. First pitch is slated for 1 p.m. tomorrow afternoon in Monticello.
