Follow @American_SB
Sunday
Saint Francis 4, UConn 3
Sophomore infielder Carli Cutler recorded her team-leading fifth multi-hit game on Sunday, as the UConn softball team lost a narrow 4-3 decision to Saint Francis in the final game of the Oklahoma State Hall of Fame Classic. Freshman pitcher Marybeth Olson picked up nine strikeouts in her complete-game effort, but a three-run rally by the Red Flash in the seventh inning dropped the Huskies (9-15) to 2-3 over the weekend at the USA Softball Hall of Fame Complex. For the second straight game, freshman Samantha Barnett posted an RBI single out of the clean-up spot for UConn. Redshirt freshman Olivia Sappington also had an RBI hit, as part of a two-out rally in the third inning. When UConn led 3-1 in the seventh, Saint Francis put runners on first and second with two outs – getting an RBI single from Sierra McKee and two-run triple from Jordan Frank – eventually taking a 4-3 lead.
UCF 7, Quinnipiac 1
Cassady Brewer hit a grand slam to lead the Knights past the Quinnipiac Bobcats, 7-1, Sunday afternoon to cap off the Under Armour Showcase in Clearwater, Fla. UCF finished the tournament with a 4-1 record to improve to 17-9 overall heading into the eight-game home stand. Brewer finished the day going 2-for-3 with four RBI, while
Denali Schappacher and
Kyra Klarkowski came away with two hits each. Cierra White recorded her first win of the season in the circle replacing
Kamryn Toney. Word threw four innings giving up only two hits and no runs striking out two.
Houston 3, Penn State 0
Houston shutout Penn State, 3-0, in the finale of the Houston Hilton Plaza Classic on Sunday afternoon at Cougar Softball Stadium. With the win, the Cougars improve to 14-7 overall, while the Nittany Lions fall to 1-17. In the circle, junior Savannah Heebner improved to 8-2. The native of Sedalia, Colo., held PSU to one hit while walking none and striking out four in her fourth shutout of the season and 13th overall of her career. The one-hitter is the second for Heebner on the week, also doing so in a 2-0 shutout at Texas Southern on Wednesday. In both outings, Heebner carried a perfect game through five and two-third innings. Sophomore second baseman Arielle James finished 1-for-3 with a two-RBI single. Junior right fielder Maya Thomas went 1-for-3 with an RBI and run scored, while teammates Heebner, Kelli Montgomery and Brooke Vannoy all doubled, respectively, as seventh Cougars recorded a hit.
Wichita State 7, Missouri State 6
The Wichita State softball team took down the Missouri State Bears on day two of the Wichita State Tournament with
Paige Luellen hitting another home run to lead the offense.
Caitlin Bingham got the start in the circle, striking out two in the first but two wild pitches got a runner home to give Missouri State an early 1-0 lead. In the second, Bingham got her third and fourth strikeouts, both looking, with a single in the bottom half following up a single from
Asea Webber to get two on base.
Bailee Nickerson continued the trend with the third straight single to load the bases, a fielder's choice on a hit by
Morgan Palmer and a fly out on a
Mackenzie Wright swing got the Bears out the jam. Three straight ground outs to
Laurie Derrico at shortstop ended the top of the third. Derrico singled into left field in the bottom half for the 100th hit of her career. In the next at-bat,
Paige Luellen crushed a two-run homer over the right field fence to put the Shockers on top 2-1.The Bears tied it back up in the fifth with a solo rocket over the center field fence and took the lead following two consecutive errors after
Bailey Klitzke had replaced Bingham in the circle. The Shockers eventually got out of the inning with Klitzke recording her 50th career strikeout. In the bottom half the Shockers took the lead right back. Wright led off with a deep triple to right field and a
Ryleigh Buck single to left field to get her home and tied the score at 5-5. Derrico then doubled into center field with the Bears intentionally walking Luellen to load the bases.
Madison Perrigan singled through the left to get Buck home.
Asea Webber flew out to right field to add another and gave the Shockers a 5-4 lead.
Bailey Lange then came in to hit for Klitzke, a deep double to right field scored another two and gave the Shockers a 7-4 lead.
Memphis 9, Bowling Green 1
Another complete game effort by
Molly Smith and 14 team hits led the University of Memphis softball team to a 9-1 run-rule victory over Bowling Green State Saturday afternoon. Memphis has now won the last eight games as it improves to 15-5 on the year. The 15-5 start is the best start for Memphis since the 2011 season. Memphis scattered its runs out throughout five of the six innings played. The Tigers first capitalized in bottom of the second inning by scoring three runs on five hits. The hits kept on rolling for the Tigers as
Brooke Lee launched her fifth home run of the season in the third inning to put Memphis up 5-1. The Tigers finished with 14 hits including six players with a multi-hit contest.
Molly Smith hurled her eighth complete game, allowing just three hits and striking out five.
Memphis 9, Indiana State 2
Memphis softball team closed out the UofM Softball Tournament with a 9-2 victory over Indiana State Sunday afternoon. The win was the ninth-straight victory for the Tigers and it improved Memphis to 16-5 on the year. Indiana State scored in the top of the first but the Sycamores lead did not last long. Memphis tied up the contest in the home half of the first and put two on the board in the second to take over the advantage. Although Indiana State added one more in the fourth, the Tigers sprinkled runs in every inning but the third to take a commanding lead over the Sycamores. The duo of Baylee Smith and Ashley Threatt combined for six hits and five runs driven in to lead Memphis offensively. The pitching duo of Mariah Nichols and
Molly Smith held down the game in the circle with Nichols earning the victory and Smith earning the save. Nichols put in 4.0 innings of work and struck out three while Smith finished the game for her second save of the season.
Wichita State 7, Western Illinois 6
Paige Luellen hit a three-run walk-off home run in the bottom of the seventh inning to lift the Wichita State softball team to a 7-6 victory over Western Illinois University at Wilkins Stadium to close out the Wichita State Tournament. Luellen also moved into first place for career RBI's in the Shocker record book on the walk off.
Bailey Lange got the start in the circle and matched her strikeout season high with nine. The Shocker bats went quiet in the sixth but Lange reached second on an error in left field in the bottom of the seventh. Wright drew the walk to get two on, Buck sacrifice bunted to advance the runners and set up the historic finish for Luellen. First pitch she crushed the ball over the center field fence for the win and send the Shocker dugout into wild celebrations. Lange got the win, moving to 7-4 on the year, with Wichita State moving to 14-8 and will now look to the Creighton Tournament next weekend where they will face both the Bluejays and the Iowa Hawkeyes in Omaha, Neb.
Upcoming Schedule - March 13
| UConn at North Texas |
3:30 p.m. ET |
| Missouri State at Tulsa |
6 p.m. ET |
| UNC Wilmington at ECU |
5 p.m. ET |
| Houston at McNeese State |
7 p.m. ET |