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Box Score 2 OKLAHOMA CITY (Feb. 8, 2018) – Oklahoma Christian struggled with delivering key hits while going 1-5 in last weekend's Southeastern Regional Invitational in Durant. But playing at home for the first time this softball season on Thursday, the Lady Eagles had multiple players come through in the clutch.
That, combined with solid pitching from
Kaylie Upton, lifted OC to a pair of wins in the Edmond Regional Festival at
Tom Heath Field.
Kayla Eichler kick-started OC's offense with a two-run double and
Bridget White hit a walk-off single in the seventh inning to push the Lady Eagles past Southern Nazarene 4-3 in the opener, and White,
Sheridan Fuller and Eichler (again) had run-scoring hits in a 3-1 win over Northeastern State. Upton (3-1) picked up the pitching wins in both games.
In the first meeting between OC (3-5) and SNU (0-1) since the 2014 season, it was the Crimson Storm who jumped to a 2-0 lead against OC starter
Madison Hagood. OC didn't break through against SNU starter Katelyn Brown (0-1) until the fourth inning, when
Madison Nordyke drew a leadoff walk, White followed with a double and (two outs later) Eichler hit her double to left-center field to tie the game.
Bailey Strecker drew a bases-loaded walk to put OC up 3-2 in the fifth, but SNU tied the game in the sixth on a single by Caitlyn Curlee. Upton entered at that point and didn't allow a hit in the final 1 2/3 innings.
In the seventh, Fuller walked and Nordyke reached on a fielder's choice, with Fuller sliding into second to barely beat the throw from Curlee, SNU's third baseman. White singled up the middle and the speedy Fuller easily scored the game-winning run.
Upton started in the circle against Northeastern (3-2), allowing the RiverHawks just two hits and one run in five innings of work. White's first-inning double to right-center scored Nordyke (who had singled) but NSU tied the game in the third, with Kaleigh Hinkle scoring on a sacrifice fly by Jessica Boone.
OC snuck ahead 2-1 in the fifth, as
Payton Sabolski reached on an error and pinch-runner
Daelyn Denny stole second base. Fuller followed with a double down the left-field line off NSU starter Gail Young (1-1).
With the lead, OC coach
Tom Heath immediately went to his hard-throwing left-handed ace, Hagood, and she pitched two hitless innings. Eichler drove in an insurance run with a sixth-inning double before Hagood finished off her second save of the season with two seventh-inning strikeouts.
The save was the 10th of Hagood's career, tying the junior from Comanche, Texas, for the OC record in that category. Shea Coats had 10 saves for OC in 2014 and 2015.
OC will play two more games in the Edmond Regional Festival on Friday, hosting Southeastern Oklahoma State at 3 p.m. and Washburn (Kan.) at 5 p.m. Washburn beat OC 7-4 last Friday in Durant in the season opener for both teams.
