LIBERTY, Mo. -- Missouri S&T Softball extended their win streak to ten today, defeating the William Jewell Cardinals 2-1 and 4-1. The Miners victory in game one solidified their place in the Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament.
Game 1: Miners 2, Cardinals 1
A double by
Taylor Nelson (Hailey, ID/Phillips Exeter Academy) in the first threatened the Cardinals' defense early, but Jewell's pitching held up, allowing them to get out of the inning unscathed. The Cardinals answered with a hit of their own in the first, but
AJ Agers (DeSoto, MO/St. Pius X) stranded a pair of runners to keep the scoreboard at 0-0.
Nelson reached base again in the third, reaching on a walk before advancing to third on a single by Agers. Yet again, Jewell's pitching held up, getting a strikeout to end the inning without allowing any runs.
S&T broke through in the fourth, getting a lead off bunt single from
Kaylee LaChappell (Oswego, IL/Oswego) followed by a home run by
Morgan Williams (Midland, MI/Midland) to give the Miners a 2-0 lead. Agers allowed just one hit in the second through fifth innings, giving up her first and only run of the game in the sixth before closing the game in the seventh to earn the 2-1 victory.
Game 2: Miners 4, Cardinals 1
The Miners capitalized on Jewell's mistakes in the opening inning, with LaChappell bringing home the first run on a single to center field.
Mia Miller (Waterloo, IL/Waterloo) struck out three in the first two innings, but a pair of early hits led to Agers stepping in to pitch in the third.
S&T added to their lead in the fourth, getting back-to-back solo home runs from
Tori Thompson (Chandler, AZ/Basha) and
Trista Grobe (DeSoto, MO/DeSoto) to make it a 3-0 game. Jewell scored their one run of the contest in the bottom of the fourth, hitting a pair of doubles before the inning ended on a ground out to Nelson.
Nelson and LaChappell both hit singles in the fifth, with the latter's swing scoring
Claire Lopez (Olathe, KS/Olathe Northwest) to put the Miners up 4-1. Both teams recorded just one hit in the remaining innings, with S&T getting the win at the end of the sixth due to inclement weather.
LaChappell's four hits were the most of any Miner today, with the sophomore hitting .667. She also tied with Williams for the most RBIs during the doubleheader with two. Agers pitched eleven innings, allowing just two runs and striking out three.
What's Next
The Miners host Rockhurst for Senior Day on Saturday, followed by Southwest Baptist for Alumni Day in Sunday's regular season finale.
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