TOPEKA, Kan. - The Concordia-St. Paul softball team (1-5) fell to Emporia State (Kan.) (7-6) and No. 13 Central Oklahoma (11-2) on Sunday at the Washburn Invitational. CSP fell just short against the Hornets, losing 2-1, and lost in five innings to Central Oklahoma, 8-0, in five innings.
Freshman center fielder Ava Blake led the Golden Bears with two hits and a .400 batting average. She scored CSP's lone run of the day. Alexis Monty, Rachel Novak, Abi Carter and Bryleigh Dana each recorded a hit. Freshman Lily Burke had the lone RBI for Concordia.
Emmy Bowne led the pitching efforts for CSP in four innings against Emporia State. Bowne threw a strikeout while allowing three hits and an earned run. Senior Erica McCullough started the game pitching three innings with a strikeout and allowed an earned run.
The Golden Bears will attempt to rebound on Monday against Pittsburg State (Kan.) (8-3) at 9:30 a.m. and Washburn (Kan.) (8-4) at 3:30 p.m. Both games are at Gahnstrom Field. They will be streamed on pay-per-view on the MIAA Network and will have free live stats.
CSP vs Emporia State
The Hornets struck first in the top of the opening inning. Taryn Burkhardt walked to start the game and reached third after two groundouts. Burkhardt scored on a two-out wild pitch before a strikeout to end the inning.
CSP responded in the bottom of the third inning, starting with a Blake leadoff single. Blake stole second and advanced to third on a groundout. Burke then grounded out to shortstop, bringing Blake home to tie the game at 1-1.
Emporia retook the lead in the top of the sixth. Juliana De Luna hit a double and was brought home on a single by Mallory Moore. The Golden Bears were able to minimize the damage the rest of the inning as ESU stranded runners on second and third.
Dana led off the bottom of the seventh inning with a single to center field, giving CSP one last opportunity. Pinch runner Makayla Wigern advanced to second on a wild pitch, but the Golden Bears were unable to bring her any further.
Blake led the Concordia-St. Paul with two hits. Dana and Carter each tallied a hit. Burke finished with an RBI.
Bowne pitched four innings, earning the loss. She gave up one earned run on three hits with a strikeout. She only walked one batter. McCullough got the start pitching three innings with a strikeout. The senior gave up one earned run and two walks.
Emporia State outhit Concordia-St. Paul 6-4. ESU left eight runners on base while CSP left five. The Golden Bears had two errors while the Hornets only had one.
CSP vs Central Oklahoma
Central Oklahoma scored two runs in the bottom of the opening hitting via two singles and two fielder's choices. Tatum Dunlavy recorded a strikeout to limit the damage with two runners on base to end the inning.
The floodgates opened in the bottom of the third inning as UCO scored five runs. The Bronchos tallied five singles and a double to take a 7-0 advantage. Carter recorded a strikeout to end the inning once again, leaving two runners on base. Central Oklahoma then hit a double and a sacrifice fly in the fourth inning to get the 8-0 advantage, leading to the five-inning victory.
Monty and Novak recorded the lone hits for the Golden Bears. Monty's hit came on the opening at-bat of the game. Dunlavy pitched 2.1 innings with a strikeout and two walks. Carter pitched 1.2 innings allowing two hits and one earned run.
Central Oklahoma's Sydney Ward picked up her second win of the season with seven strikeouts. Ward has a 3.18 ERA this season and now leads the Bronchos with 26 strikeouts.
The Bronchos outhit the Golden Bears 9-2. Each team had an error. Central Oklahoma left four runners on base while Concordia-St. Paul left three runners on base.
