Game 1 Box Score
Game 2 Box Score
KIRKSVILLE - - Alex Weber singled home Katie Pitts in the bottom of the seventh inning of Tuesday afternoon's game two for a walk-off victory, sending the Truman softball team home with a split against Maryville (Mo.). The Saints took game one, 5-2, before Truman bounced back for a dramatic 5-4 victory in the nightcap.
Two-run first innings in each game gave Truman (11-9) the lead each time, with freshman Kelsey Bollman finding herself in the mix on each occasion. In the first game, Bollman doubled home Weber to get Truman on the board before Mary Manley drove home Bollman with an RBI single. Then, in game two, after Laura Miller singled with one out, Bollman blasted a shot beyond the left-center field wall for a similar 2-0 advantage.
But both times, Maryville (3-13) stormed right back, scoring four in the first inning of game one and two in the top of the second in game two, adding a third run in the third inning. The first time, the Bulldogs couldn't plate another run in defense of pitchers Kirsten Krause and Elizabeth Grover, but the second time around, Truman matched MU step-for-step in carrying a 4-4 tie to the final inning.
After the Saints stranded a runner in the top of the 7th, Katie Pitts led off the bottom half with a triple into the left field corner. Then, in the waning light of the afternoon, Weber sent the first pitch she saw to the left of the shortstop, allowing no true play at the plate and Pitts to mark the game's winning run.
Ashley Rotkvich started the game for Truman, allowing four runs in three-plus innings before Beth Schnurbusch entered in relief and held Maryville quiet the rest of the way to earn her fourth win of the season.
Bollman and Miller each put together three-hit days, with Bollman running her season-long hitting streak to 16 games. The top four hitters in both games for Truman (Weber – Miller – Bollman – Manley) combined on the day to produce all seven RBI, score five of the seven runs, and pick up 11 of the 15 total hits.
Truman returns to action this weekend at the Southwest Baptist MIAA Crossover, where the Bulldogs will face six MIAA teams in three days. The games will not count in the MIAA standings and will just be used as regional games.
