ARKADELPHIA, Ark. – The Christian Brothers University softball team earned a 6-5 victory, over Missouri-Saint Louis to earn a split on the opening day of the McGhee-Hawkins Invitational, on Saturday.
The Lady Bucs opened the day with a 7-5 setback at Ouachita Baptist.
Missouri-Saint Louis has made the NCAA Tournament the last three seasons, and won the Great Lakes Valley Conference in 2019.
GAME ONE: OBU 7 (1-0), CBU 5 (0-3)
GAME CHANGER:
- The Tigers scored two runs in the second, third and fourth innings.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE:
- The Tigers finished the game with a 10-5 edge in hits.
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Kendall Westbrooks was the lone CBU player with multiple hits (2-for-4). Her home run in the second inning was her second of the season.
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Bree Brady smacked a two run home run. It is the first round-tripper of her CBU career.
- Starting pitcher
Macy Cumming allowed four runs on six hits in two innings.
KEY PLAYS:
- The Tigers took a 1-0 lead, in the bottom of the first, on an RBI single.
- Westbrooks tied the game at 1 with her second inning home run.
- After OBU added two more in the second, Brady's home run tied the game at 3.
- OBU answered back with two more runs in the bottom half of the third inning.
- The Tigers made it 7-3 in the fourth, and CBU finished the scoring on a pair of wild pitches in the fifth.
NOTABLES:
- Westbrooks is now tied for sixth in CBU history with eight career home runs.
GAME TWO: CBU 6 (3-3), UMSL 5 (0-2)
GAME CHANGER:
- The Lady Bucs scored three runs in the top of the first and did not look back.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE:
- CBU had a 9-8 advantage in hits.
- The Lady Bucs had four extra base hits, all of which were doubles.
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Memory Willingham and
Mackenzie Puckett recorded two hits apiece. Willingham, Puckett, Westbrooks and
Elaina McGill had the four CBU doubles.
- McGill's double drove in a pair of runs.
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McKenna Rose (2-0) allowed four runs, one earned, on seven hits in five innings.
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Macy Cumming surrendered just one hit in two innings to earn the save.
KEY PLAYS:
- The Lady Bucs scored three runs in the first and added one in the third, highlighted by McGill's two-RBI double.
- With CBU leading 4-0, in the fourth, the Tritons got on the board using a sac fly.
- RBI singles by Puckett and
Caroline Gross put CBU up 6-1 in the fifth.
- UMSL answered with three runs in the bottom of the fifth.
- The Tritons made it 6-5 in the bottom of the sixth, scoring on a double play, but were kept off the board in the seventh.
UP NEXT:
The Lady Bucs are scheduled to return to action on Sunday, Feb. 9 when they wrap up play at the McGhee-Hawkins Invite. The Lady Bucs are set to start the day with No. 2 Texas A&M-Kingsville at 9 a.m. and finish with host Henderson State at 1 p.m.
