Box Score Maryville College's rally fell just short on Sunday afternoon, as a two-run home run by Centre College in extra innings lifted the Colonels to a 15-14 win.
The loss marks MC's first of the 2020 campaign, after the Scots started the season 3-0.
Maryville trailed by as many as eight runs in Sunday's Maryville College Invitational finale, as the Scots battled back to tie the game and force extra innings. The three-hour game saw 29 combined runs and 40 combined hits.
MC was paced by freshman Courtney Deck who went an impressive 5-of-5 with four runs and two RBI. Five other Scots tallied two-hit afternoons in the loss.
Back-to-back-to-back doubles by Centre in the first inning started the scoring, as Sarah Abuchon's two-RBI double to left-center placed Brylin Isaacs and RileyAnne Sharpe. Sarah Fly and Abigail Harper followed suit with RBI doubles of their own, as Centre jumped to a 4-0 lead.
MC rallied in the bottom of the first, as Taylor Campbell's second home run of the 2020 season plated her and Deck. The two-run shot made it 4-2 after one complete inning.
Melissa Collins posted an RBI single in the top of the fourth, before Aubuchon added her third RBI of the day with a single. Through four-and-a-half, Centre led 6-2.
Maryville again cut into the lead in the bottom of the fifth, as a Morgan Brewer two-RBI double scored Reid Ballard and Deck. Kennedy Richardson singled to center to score Brewer, making it a one-run game, 6-5.
The Colonels would explode in the top of the sixth for seven runs to take a 13-5 lead. Sam Thompson and Fly had an two-RBI single each, as Haley Simon and Collins added RBI singles of their own in the rally. The seven-run inning forced the Scots to score or end the game with the eight-run rule.
MC found a way in the bottom of the sixth, as Ashton Hayden blasted an inside-the-park home down the left-field line. Ballard added a two-RBI single to center, scoring Deck and Christina White for a 13-8 score through six.
Maryville was down to their final inning, as White would post a two-RBI triple to score Hayden and Amaya Goodloe. Deck's RBI single scored White, before an error added another two runs for the Scots. That knotted things at 13-all, forcing extra innings.
Collins blasted a two-run home run on the opening pitch of the eighth inning to take a 15-13 lead. Deck added an RBI double in the bottom of the eighth, but the Scots fell 15-14.
Maryville (3-1) was led by Deck's perfect performance, as White went 2-for-6 with two runs and two RBI. Hayden was 2-for-4 with two runs, an RBI and a walk, as Ballard went 2-for-4 with two RBI, a run and a walk.
Richardson was 2-for-4 with a run and an RBI, while Goodloe was 2-for-5 with a run. Campbell went 1-for-5 with a pair of RBI, a run and a homer, as Brewer was 1-for-3 with two RBI and a run. Jazmine Geary tallied a run for the Scots.
Centre (2-2) was paced by Sharpe who went 3-for-4 with three runs and two walks, as Isaacs went 3-for-5 with a trio of runs. Collins was 3-for-6 with four RBI and two runs, while Fly went 3-for-6 with three RBI and two runs. Aubuchon was 3-for-6 with three RBI and a run scored.
Maryville will have a week off before they return to action on Sunday, March 1. The Scots host Methodist University in a double-header beginning at noon.
