LAKE CHARLES, La. – The Central Arkansas softball team suffered a pair of defeats on Saturday, dropping both games of the Cowgirl Challenge. The Bears lost to Lamar in the morning game before falling to the hosting Cowgirls in the afternoon slate.
Central Arkansas falls to 2-7 on the year after Saturday, and has largely struggled to generate momentum on either side of the ball this season.
Game One: Lamar – 11, Central Arkansas – 2
After surrendering a run in the top of the first inning, the Bears came out swinging in the bottom, determined to return the favor.
Kylie Griffin singled to lead the way, establishing an early baserunner. A couple of batters later,
Morgan Nelson found a pitch she liked and detonated on it, sending it out of the park and putting the Bears up 2-1 after the first inning.
But just as the Bears had responded to the early run, so too did the Cardinals respond likewise. Lamar nickel and dimed the Central Arkansas defense, using small-ball tactics to plate three more runs in the second inning. From there, Lamar never looked back, scoring at least one run in every inning to hand the Bears their first loss of the day. Griffin finished the day 2-for-3 at the plate, continuing to swing a good bat atop the lineup.
Game Two: McNeese – 14, Central Arkansas – 0
Playing McNeese for the first and only time in Lake Charles, the Bears were unable to answer the call after the first loss of the day, falling behind quickly against the Cowgirls. McNeese would add runs in the second and third innings as well, as the Central Arkansas offense would take a time through the lineup to make adjustments.
The Bears threatened in the fourth inning, with
Kylie Griffin again leading off the inning and getting on base with a single. The next two batters would move her to third base, but the middle of the lineup would ground out into a double-play, ending the inning and leaving the junior stranded at third. McNeese cruised to the win after eliminating the threat, as the Bears would suffer their third defeat in a row.
Central Arkansas has one more game in the Cowgirl Challenge, playing Oklahoma one more time on Sunday. First pitch against the No. 1 Sooners is set for 11 a.m., wrapping up the weekend for the Bears.
