BENTONVILLLE, Ark. – The University of Missouri-St. Louis softball team held off a late rally to defeat Washburn 6-4 in its second game on Saturday in the Alvy Early Memorial Classic at Memorial Park in Bentonville, Ark. The Tritons fell to Harding 18-1 in five innings in their first game of the day.
Game 2 – UMSL 6 Washburn 4
UMSL (3-5) broke on top with one swing of the bat in the top of the third.
Simia Spahiev hit her second grand slam in as many as days scoring
May Pasqualini, Courtney Settles and
Jamie Widule. The Tritons added to their lead in the fourth as Settles singled through the right side of the infield scoring Pasqualini.
UMSL tacked on an insurance run in the sixth. With one out,
Phoebe Miller singled to right, moved to second on Pasqualini's ground out to second and scored on
Maddie Illingworth's double to right center.
The Ichabods (5-4) got RBI doubles from Jaden LaBarge and Erin Boles in the home half of the sixth to cut the Triton lead in half. Washburn had the winning run at the plate with no out but
Ashley Borowitz traded a run for an out getting a ground out to short, then struck out the next hitter and got the final hitter to foul out to Settles to end the game.
UMSL had six hits in the contest and was led by Spahiev and Illingworth with two apiece. Borowitz picked up the complete game win allowing four runs on eight hits with seven strikeouts against four walks to improve to 2-1 on the year.
Game 1 – Harding 18 UMSL 1, 5 innings
The first game of the day was all Lady Bisons (7-1) as they sent 21 batters to the plate in the first two innings scoring 14 runs on 11 hits. Harding hit two home runs in the second inning. It would add one in the third and three more in the fourth.
The Tritons lone run came in the fourth as Settles brought home
Gwyn Miller with a groundout to second.
UMSL had five hits in the opener and was led by Pasqualini with two while Widule, Miller and Settles had one apiece.
Sasha Buckberger dropped to 0-1 on the year allowing 11 runs, nine earned, on nine hits in 1.1 innings pitched.
The Tritons wrap up their trip to Arkansas with two more games on Sunday. They'll take on Emporia State at 11 a.m. and Missouri Southern at 1:30 p.m. Both games will be played at Memorial Park.
