CONWAY, Ark. – After celebrating the academic success of the graduating Bears, the Central Arkansas softball team took two games over the Lipscomb Bisons. Game one was a relatively easy endeavor, especially compared to game two's nail-biting ending.
The Bears improved to 33-18-1 overall and 15-6-1 in ASUN games, inching closer to a potential top seed in next week's ASUN Championship.
Emma Robertson edited the program's record book, becoming the first player in program history to log 60 RBI in a single season, and added her 13
th home run of the year.
Game One: Central Arkansas – 8, Lipscomb – 0
The first game of the series got off to a quick start for the Bears. After a three-up, three-down inning for the Bisons, the Bears got right to work.
Addie Graham established herself as the first base runner, hitting a double to the wall to open the offense. After moving over to third, the sophomore outfielder scored when Robertson drilled a single up the middle, and the Bears struck first.
The one-run lead held until the third, when again, Graham got on base to put on a runner. But this time, it was
Trinity Brandon who demolished the pitch, sending a towering two-run homer to make it a three-run game. Lipscomb finally broke the no-hitter in the fourth, catching a double, but nothing else.
Central Arkansas opened it up in the fourth, starting off with a
Kaitlyn Graham double. It marked her 18
th of the season, tying her for the program record for doubles in a single season.
LJ Smith laid down an infield hit, dropping a perfect bunt.
Lilly Hood came up and doubled to right field, scoring the lead runner while keeping two in scoring position, and the lead grew to four.
Gracie St. Hilaire lined a base hit to right center, and this time, both runners scored, stretching the advantage to six. After a double play cleared the bases,
Renee Christian doubled, and Graham doubled behind her to score a seventh run.
Lipscomb went quickly in the top of the fifth, and Robertson ended it with a 2-2 count, fouling off a few pitches before delivering the final swing of the bat, a launch to center to cap the first game of the series.
Bailie Runner picked up her 14
th win of the season, the 36
th of her UCA career, along with her second solo shutout of the year.
Game Two: Central Arkansas – 7, Lipscomb – 2
The second game started with a scoreless first inning, and it was Lipscomb who tallied the first run of the day. But the Bears answered right back in the bottom of the second, pairing an
LJ Smith single, a
Lilly Hood single, and a
Grace Molitor single to even the score.
But two hits to start the third plated another run for the Bisons, and in the Bears didn't answer right away. Sure, the Lipscomb offense was held in check, but the Central Arkansas lineup just kept stranding runners on base as the innings grew deeper.
Down to their final six outs, the Bears needed something to change. But the first two batters of the sixth did not instill confidence, and after a strikeout and a groundout, things were looking dire. St. Hilaire calmed the lineup down with a five-pitch walk, and Molitor singled, hinting at a potential rally. As the lineup turned over,
Renee Christian and
Addie Graham both walked, the latter of which tied the game as
Malia Robertson crossed home plate after entering the game as a pinch runner. The Bisons changed pitchers, but it didn't matter, as
Trinity Brandon drew another walk, giving the Bears a 3-2 lead.
Emma Robertson drilled a single through the left side, scoring another pair of runners, and
Kaitlyn Graham repeated the feat, dropping in another two-RBI hit. The two-out rally flipped the script from a one-run deficit to a five-run lead, a six-run sixth that sucked all the momentum out of the Bisons defense.
Lipscomb put one runner on in the seventh, but couldn't get the lineup moving, and the Bears claimed the series after a terrific comeback in game two.
Emory Bowlin earned her third ASUN win, and eighth overall, tossing five scoreless innings in relief and striking out two.
The Bears and Bisons will finish the series tomorrow at 1 p.m., then follow the game with Senior Day Celebrations.
