ARKADELPHIA, Ark. –Â
Michelle Sorensen pitched seven scoreless innings and
Monica Monreal's first inning RBI proved to be the game's winning hit, as the Reddies defeated Ouachita Baptist in Tuesday's series finale, 1-0.
Sorensen's three hit shutout was her eighth win and ninth complete game of the season.
Christianna Camp went 2-for-3 in the second half of the doubleheader after earning her first start since mid-March.
Henderson State and Ouachita split the season series for the second time in three years as OBU took the afternoon's first game 2-1 in 10 innings.
The Reddies (20-22, 14-16), will hit the road for the first time in April when HSU visits Arkansas-Monticello for a pair of doubleheaders on Friday and Saturday.
Game Two: Henderson State 1, Ouachita Baptist, 0
After Ouachita Baptist stranded a runner in scoring position in the top of the first, HSU was determined to take advantage when it got the same opportunity in the bottom half.
Madie Green stood on second following an infield single and was driven home by a two-strike, two-out RBI single from Monreal.
Ouachita's centerfielder Macy Wilson made an impressive throw from center field, but Green used an agile slide to get a hand on home plate before the tag was applied. Monreal advanced on the throw, but the Reddies were unable to double the lead, and the score remained 1-0 Henderson after one.
Reddies' second baseman
Nadia Ballarin made the first of several impressive plays in the top of the second. With one out and one on, Ballarin picked a backhand groundball, stepped on second, and fired to first for an inning ending double play.
Ballarin helped the Reddies threaten in the bottom of the second when she battled back from a 1-2 count to draw a walk, giving HSU runners on first and second with one out after Camp singled to lead off the inning. Unfortunately, Camp and Ballarin were left stranded when OBU induced back-to-back groundouts to end the inning.
Sorensen worked around two walks in the top of the third, and the Lady Tigers did not get another chance until the top of the seventh with the Reddies nursing a 1-0 lead. Two quick outs put OBU on their last leg before Kelsey O'Brien and Natalie Jackson walked to put runners on first and second.
With the tying run in scoring position, Ouachita batted a single back up the middle and looked as though they had tied the game. However,
Marcela Lopez charged the bounding ball and made a perfect throw to nail O'Brien at home plate for the third and final out and give HSU a dramatic 1-0 win.
Game One: Ouachita Baptist 2, Henderson State 1
Becca Almond had her best outing of the season but it wasn't enough, as the Reddies fell 2-1 in extra innings in the doubleheader's first contest on Tuesday.
The Lady Tigers threatened early on and put runners on the corners in the top of the first, but Almond worked around the two singles, inducing a ground ball to get out of the jam.
Despite an OBU home run to lead off the second, Almond kept the Reddies within striking distance after Ouachita combined back-to-back singles with a sacrifice and put two runners in scoring position with just one out. Almond got a ground ball and an infield pop-up to end the inning.
Ouachita Baptist's pitcher Marissa Butler retired the Reddies in order in the first, second, and third, but Lopez put the Reddies in both the hit column and the scoring column with one swing of the bat to open the fourth frame.
Lopez went opposite field and OBU's left fielder dove but could not come up with the line drive, as it squirted underneath her glove and rolled all the way the wall. Lopez used her speed and cruised around the bases for an inside-the-park home run which tied the game 1-1. The home run was Lopez's first as a Reddie.
By the middle innings, both pitchers had settled into a groove. In the fifth through ninth innings, Henderson and Ouachita combined for just six hits. Unfortunately, the Lady Tigers got a solo home run in the top of the tenth from Tobi Finley which broke a 1-1 tie. The Reddies got
Lindsey Williams to third with just one out in the bottom half, but Williams was thrown out at the plate attempting to score on a sacrifice fly and OBU held on for a 2-1 victory.
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