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Box Score 3 Maryville Wraps Weeklong Trip Friday Morning
LEESBURG, Fla. – Maryville played in three competitive softball games here Thursday at the Spring Games Tournament and lost all three.
The Scots first fell in a 5-2 thriller in eight innings to No. 22-ranked Concordia (Wis.), a team that won again later Thursday to improve to 12-1 on the season. Maryville then lost 9-3 to Amherst of the NESCAC and 4-2 to Washington (Md.), leaving the Scots at 8-9 overall and 1-4 on the Florida trip.
Friday offers one last chance for success when the Scots take on FDU-Florham of New Jersey in a 9:30 a.m. contest in Kissimmee.
Pitchers Battle
Thursday's Game 1 was a pitchers duel between Maryville's Megan Ackerman and Concordia's Gina Followell. Both pitchers allowed two runs in the third inning and zeroes the rest of the way until the top of the eighth, when Concordia finally broke through for three runs to pin Ackerman with the loss.
Followell was the pitching star for Concordia, posting 18 strikeouts and only three hits allowed over her eight innings. Ackerman scattered 10 hits and issued just one walk with six strikeouts. Only three of Ackerman's five runs allowed were earned.
Sara Koonce and Emily Hill had back-to-back RBI-base hits to plate the Maryville runs in the third, scoring Amaya Goodloe and Koonce, respectively. The other Scot hit was a sharp single to left by Hill to set up a potential rally in the last of the sixth. Hill advanced to second on a sacrifice by Kaliyah Hensic, but Hill was stranded there.
Big Inning Spells Early Trouble
In Game 2, Amherst pounced on Maryville pitching for eight runs on eight hits in the top of the second inning and never looked back. The Mammoths finished with just 10 hits for the game, but the damage was done.
Kennedy Henry went the first 1 and 1/3 innings for Maryville in the circle, allowing five runs on four hits and taking the loss for her first decision of the season. Macee Shults came on and pitched the final 5 and 2/3 innings, allowing four runs on six hits and fanning out a pair.
Koonce and Micayla Clark contributed a pair of hits to lead the Scots offensively, with Kaliyah Hensic adding an RBI-double and Brecca Williams a run-scoring single. Talia Bloxham went the distance in the circle for Amherst, scattering seven hits and striking out seven while improving to 2-1.
Amherst with the victory upped its record to 4-2.
Missed Opportunities
In Thursday's nightcap, Maryville struck early against Washington with two runs in the top of the first. Jenica Brown led off with a walk and stole second. One out later, Koonce singled her home and then Koonce moved around to third on a single to right by Hill. Clark's fly to center plated Koonce for a 2-0 Scots lead.
Maryville had chances to add on more runs but stranded 11 on base, and those missed opportunities proved costly. Washington, meanwhile, made the most of its chances, plating two-out runs in the first and fifth to retake the lead 3-2. The Shorewomen tacked on an insurance tally in the sixth when they reached Maryville's Ackerman for three consecutive hits.
Both pitchers went the distance, with Washington's Lexi Barnhart improving to 2-3 after scattering eight hits and striking out five against four walks. Barnhart aided her cause with the RBI-single in the sixth. Ackerman dropped to 6-5 on the season in another tough-luck loss. She also allowed eight hits but walked only one and struck out three. Only three of Ackerman's four runs allowed were earned.
