Box Score OKLAHOMA CITY (March 4, 2017) – Oklahoma Christian's bats provided plenty of firepower and
Madison Hagood's relief pitching quieted Fort Hays State (Kan.) after a hot start.
That combination proved effective for OC on Saturday, as the Lady Eagles completed a three-game softball series sweep with an 11-6 win over the Tigers at
Tom Heath Field.
OC (11-8) has won four straight before a nonconference doubleheader on Tuesday at Eastern New Mexico, and after that, the Lady Eagles will open Heartland Conference play, hosting Oklahoma Panhandle State next Friday and Saturday.
The Lady Eagles received offensive production from up and down its lineup against Fort Hays State (5-11) throughout the series and that trend continued Saturday. Five OC players contributed two or more hits toward the Lady Eagles' total of 14.
The top of the order was particularly effective, as
Sheridan Bond went 2-for-4 with a double and scored twice,
Haley Squier went 3-for-3 and scored three times,
Bridget White went 3-for-4 with two RBIs and three runs scored and
Niki Davidson went 2-for-3 with a two-run homer, three RBIs and two runs scored.
The Tigers took the lead in the top of the first on Veronica Knittig's RBI double. OC jumped on Fort Hays State starter Hailey Chapman (4-6) for four runs in the bottom of the inning, with White's triple to right-center bringing home two runs and Davidson's homer over the left-field wall scoring two more.
But Fort Hays State answered with five runs in the top of the second – two on Bailey Kennedy's single to left field and three on a homer by Knittig that put the Tigers up 6-4.
That's when Hagood relieved starter
Kaylie Upton in the circle, and the sophomore left-hander allowed the Tigers only two hits over the next 5 1/3 innings. Hagood (6-4), who had five strikeouts on Saturday, recorded two wins and a save in the three games against Fort Hays State. In the process, she lowered her ERA to 1.59, second-best in the Heartland, and raised her strikeout total to a league-leading 51.
As they did in the first, the Lady Eagles responded to the Tigers' outburst with one of their own, scoring four more times. A RBI double by Bond made it 6-5 and Bond scored to tie the game on a single by Squier. White doubled home Squier and later stole home to put OC up 8-6.
The Lady Eagles added three more runs during a five-hit outburst in the fourth, with Davidson and Upton delivering run-scoring singles.
Highlights from the game:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J6tipqL-zHA&feature=youtu.be
