#7 Eagles Head South for Tough Competition
Tishomingo, OK | Denison, Texas- The Kirkwood Eagles softball team headed south this past week to take on ranked opponents and test themselves before conference season. Through the first three doubleheaders that the Eagles have played, two opponents have been ranked in the top ten. The Murray College Aggies are ranked 5th in the NJCAA DII rankings and Grayson College is ranked 7th in the DI rankings.
In the first doubleheader of the week, Kirkwood took on Northeastern Oklahoma AM in Miami, OK. Kirkwood first got on the board in the top of the fourth inning after Kylie Schult homered to left field, scoring two runs. Kiya Johnson also hit a solo home run to left field, while Brenna Ross singled, scoring two runs. Natalie Vitek started in the circle for the Eagles and allowed three hits and three runs one earned) over 5 innings, striking out one and walking five. The Eagles earned the win with a 7-3 score. In the second game against the Lady Norse, the game came down to the absolute wire. The Eagles fought back after falling down by four runs in the third inning. They got the score to 4-2 in the top of the fourth when Brenna Ross hit a solo home run to center field, and Sailor Hall also hit a solo home run to left field. Then in the seventh, the Eagles scored five runs on five hits to take an 8-6 lead. However, the Lady Norse would hit a three-run home in the bottom of the 7th, making the final score 9-8.
The next doubleheader put the Eagles against the 5th-ranked Murray State Aggies. The game had Kirkwood down by 3 runs for most of it, however, Kirkwood completely flipped the game in the top of the 7th inning scoring 5 runs on 5 hits to take a 5-3 lead, which would ultimately be the final score. Delia Schwartz hit a home run to center field that drove in three. Peyton Paulsen began the game pitching for Kirkwood, giving up 6 hits and four runs (one earned) over 7 innings, striking out five and walking three. Rachael Schlotter led Kirkwood with two hits in three at-bats from the leadoff position. The next game would prove to be another nail-biter. The game was tied at 3 in the bottom of the eighth inning when Murray State hit a double, scoring one run, winning the game 4-3. Kirkwood took the lead in the top of the 7th inning after Peyton Johnson homered to right field, and Sailor Hall homered to center field, each scoring one run.
Kirkwood then had to take on #7 ranked in Division I Grayson College. Even with Kirkwood outhitting the Vikings 7-4, Kirkwood ultimately fell by a score of 4-1. Lexi Hines led Kirkwood with one run batted in. The third baseman went 1-3 on the day. The second game would keep fans on the edge of their seats. Kirkwood trailed by as many as four runs during this game. However, Kirkwood clawed their way back and was down 5-4 in the top of the 6th inning, when Peyton Johnson homered to left field, scoring two runs. Also in the 6th, Brenna Rosee hit a single that drove in two runs. Sailor Hall started the game pitching for Kirkwood, allowing 8 hits and 5 runs over 5 innings, striking out 3 and walking 4.
The Eagles will now play Friday and Saturday against Fort Scott and #10 Johnson County. Kirkwood is proving they are not only a team to be reckoned with, but they can play the best in the country and come out on top.
