Lady Cougars Fall Twice in MCC Opener at Saint Francis


	Lady Cougar Softball Recap Lady Cougars Fall Twice in MCC Opener at Saint Francis written by Dave Parsons, Sports Information Director Game #1 Boxscore \| Game #2 Boxscore FORT WAYNE, Ind. (3-30-2012) - The Mount Vernon Nazarene University women's fastpitch softball team dropped a pair of games at the University of Saint Francis (Ind.) on Friday afternoon in the visiting Lady Cougars' Mid-Central College Conference opener as MVNU fell 4-0 in the first game and then 7-6 in eight innings in the second game. Saint Francis (10-10, 4-0 MCC) jumped on the scoreboard with a pair of runs in the bottom of the first inning in game with an RBI double by Melissa Harber and a run-scoring single by Kinzie Gardner. The score remained that way until the bottomof the sixth inning when Saint Francis strung together three more hits to plate two more runs to extend the lead to 4-0. Abby White had an RBI single, while Meghan Flanary drove in the other run with a ground out. MVNU (6-11, 0-2 MCC) managed just five hits in the game with senior outfielder MacKenzie Shaw collecting two of them. Junior pitcher Jill Wildermuth had the Lady Cougars' only extra base hit of the game with a pinch hit double with two outs in the top of the seventh inning. Harber, Gardner, and White each had two hits to lead Saint Francis, which stranded 12 base runners in the game. Sophomore right-hander Ashley Riffell (2-4) suffered the loss on the mound for MVNU as she gave up eight hits, one walk, and four runs over six innings with eight strikeouts. Kortney Holliday (2-5) earned the victory for Saint Francis as she tossed a five-hit shutout with five strikeouts and no walks in her seven innings of work. The second game was a back-and-forth affair that saw both teams take the lead more than once before the game ended in dramatic fashion. Saint Francis again jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning on RBI singles by Harber and Meghan Thomas. After the visiting Lady Cougars cut the lead to 2-1 with an unearned run in the top of the second inning, Saint Francis answered with two more runs in the bottom of the third inning to go in front 4-1. Stephanie Whitman and Jackie Beilfuss led off the inning with back-to-back solo home runs to centerfield. MVNU responded with three runs in the top of the fourth inning as the result of three Saint Francis errors to knot the score at 4-4. Shaw had the only RBI in the inning when she drew a bases-loaded walk. However, the lead did not last for long as Harber hit an RBI double and Whitman followed with a run-scoring triple to give Saint Francis back a 6-4 lead in the bottom of the fourth inning. The score remained that way until the top of the sixth inning when junior catcher Kayleigh Williams plated a run with a fielder's choice and junior second baseman Brittney Kuhn drove in another run with an RBI single to tie the game at 6-6. Neither team scored again until the bottom of the eighth inning when Saint Francis pushed across the winning run with two outs when Harber scored on a wild pitch after reaching on a single and advancing to third on a single by Amy Morrison as the host Lady Cougars prevailed 7-6. Wildermuth started on the mound for MVNU and allowed eight hits, four walks, and six runs over 3.1 innings with two strikeouts. Senior right-hander Meagan Stott (0-3) tossed 4.1 innings of relief and gave up just four hits and one run with four strikeouts, but she took the loss as a result of the wild pitch in the bottom of the eighth inning. Meanwhile, Beilfuss started and lasted 5.2 innings for Saint Francis as she gave up seven hits, one walk, and six runs - all unearned - while striking out three batters. Morrison (3-0) tossed the final 2.1 innings and earned the victory in relief as she allowed just one hits to go with one strikeout. Offensively, Shaw and freshman outfielder Deanna Dill each collected two hits for MVNU, while Harber went 3-for-5 with three runs scored and Whitman, Morrison, and Alyssa Kumpfmiller each registered two hits apiece for Saint Francis. The Lady Cougars will return to action on Saturday with another MCC road doubleheader at Bethel (Ind.) College that is scheduled to start at 1 p.m.

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