PINEVILLE, La. – The Louisiana Christian University softball team scored seven two-out runs in the third inning thanks to three errors and cruised to a 9-1 run-rule win in five innings over the Embry-Riddle Eagles Saturday afternoon at the LCU Softball Invitational at Wildcat Park.
Louisiana Christian (2-1) had a runner on first and two outs when things started to fall apart for Embry-Riddle Aeronautical (2-2).
Kylie Duplan skied a ball to left field, which was dropped, keeping the inning alive.
Mariel Medrano then hit a light chopper back to the pitcher who saw it bounce off her glove, allowing all three base runners to reach safely.
Then came the big hit for the Wildcats as
Maci Baldwin's fly ball down the left field line could not be tracked down by a diving Eagle left fielder. With
Christina Curtis and Duplan already in, the throw to try and get Medrano at the plate went wild which also allowed Baldwin to come all the way around as well, giving LCU a 4-0 lead.
But that wasn't all for the Wildcats in the frame as
Lexi Broussard beat out an infield single back to the pitcher, then
Naya Soto and
Claire Cullen both drew walks to load the bases once again. Curtis, who had started the inning with a base hit, shot a pitch back up the middle to score both Broussard and Soto.
Madelyn Bourgoyne kept the rally going as she also went back up the middle with a hit to score Cullen and give LCU a 7-0 lead at the end of the inning.
Embry-Riddle got their lone run of the game in the third inning, a run that Louisiana Christian got back in the bottom half of the frame. Duplan led off the inning watching ball four fly by to get walked. She moved to second on Medrano's ground ball to third base and came home on Baldwin's RBI single through the left side of the infield, making it 8-1.
Soto started the fourth with a base hit to the right-center.
Sydney Viallon, who took Soto's place on the base path, stole second and came home on Bourgoyne's RBI single to right, putting the Wildcats in position to end the game early in the fifth inning. LCU would not allow that chance go to waste, getting the Eagles in order in their next at bat, enacting the run rule and bringing the game to its conclusion.
Baldwin, Curtis, and Bourgoyne all had multiple hits in the contest.
Baldwin was two-for-two at the plate with a double and knocked in four runs while scoring once herself on her little league grand slam in the third inning. She was also hit by a pitch in the contest.
Both Curtis and Bourgoyne went two-for-three with two RBI while Curtis also scored once.
Duplan was officially 0-for-one at bat, reaching on a walk and an error and came around to score twice.
Addison Greak (2-0) went four innings in the circle and gave up just two hits and one run, which was earned. She walked one with one strikeout to get her second win of the early season.
Addison Bailey came on in the fifth inning and retired the only three Eagle batters she faced.
The Wildcats return to action next weekend in the LSUA Softball Invitational, set to play two games both Friday and Saturday. On Friday, LCU starts the day with a 1 p.m. contest against the Texas A&M-San Antonio Jaguars (2-0) before wrapping up the first day with at 3 p.m., looking to avenge this weekend's lone defeat by taking on the Central Baptist Mustangs (2-2). All games of the LSUA Softball Invitational are set to be played at the Ward 9 Sportsplex in Pineville.
