MARYVILLE – The honors were even at the Maryville College Classic.
All three participating teams went 2-2 over the weekend, with Sunday's play culminating in a 4-3 Maryville victory over Wittenberg and then a 4-2 Scots setback to Emory. In Sunday's opener, Emory smashed Wittenberg 10-2 in a five-inning run-rule game.
Maryville went 1-1 both days, and Sunday's pair of games saw the Scots fall behind early and forced to rally late. The strategy worked against Wittenberg, not so much against Emory.
"We waited around a little too long today," Maryville head coach
Jill Moore said. "We did not make the adjustments that we needed against two particularly good teams, so we are going to learn from it. We know what we have to do and what we need to work on.
"That's all you can ask when you play these good pre-conference season teams."
Dickinson Goes the Distance
In the nightcap,
Paige Dickinson was terrific in the circle and deserved a better fate than shouldering a tough-luck loss. The sophomore righthander went the distance, scattering 10 hits and allowing just two earned runs. It was her third career complete game, but the first one going seven full innings.
"It was great to see Paige be Paige in the circle today," "She put us on her back and really carried us. She's been working really hard on a lot of things, and it showed today."
Emory scored single runs in the first and the fifth before tacking on an important pair of unearned runs in the top of the seventh. That's because Maryville finally put together a multihit inning in the bottom of the seventh against Emory's Lexi Bach.
Bailey Myers led off with an infield single and
Ryleigh Maples walked. One out later,
Micayla Clark doubled to right center, scoring Myers. As Clark was racing into second base, the throw from the outfield struck her in the leg and ricocheted into short left center. Maples raced home and Clark made it all the way to third base in what was now a 4-2 game with one out.
But Bach held her nerve and retired the final two Scots for her first victory of the season. Dickinson also accepted her first pitching decision of the year.
In Maryville's first game, Wittenberg jumped in front with three runs in the first two innings against Scots ace
Megan Ackerman. The MC comeback began in the fourth when Myers singled home
Emma Blankenship, who pinch-ran with two outs for Dickinson after she had doubled.
Three-Run Rally for the Win
The Scots made it all the way back with a three-run sixth.
After Maples reached on an error, Myers and Clark delivered perfect bunt singles to load the bases. Cortney Baine made it a 3-2 Wittenberg game with a sacrifice fly to left, and then
Brecca Williams tied the game with a single to left.
Sara Koonce pushed Maryville in front with a sac fly of her own to center field, and the Scots held on from there.
Megan Ackerman went the distance for her fifth victory against one defeat. She allowed seven hits over her seven innings, with just two of the three runs earned. Ackerman after winning twice in the MC Classic now sports a 1.89 ERA.
For the weekend, Williams led the Scots with a .600 batting average on 9-for-15. She scored a team-high six runs. Maples scored five runs and belted one of the four Maryville home runs. The others rocketed off the bats of Dickinson, Koonce and Kaitlyn Woodruff.
Myers batted .500 on 6-for-12, with Dickinson (.467) and Koonce (.429) close behind. The latter two Scots tied for the team lead in RBIs with six apiece.
Woodruff, Gilstrap Close to Full Returns
With Woodruff close to full strength, and
Haynie Jane Gilstrap soon to return with her .571 batting average, Moore will have some interesting decisions to make regarding her lineup.
Those decisions could come as soon as Monday afternoon, when the Scots host Austin College of Texas in a 4 p.m. doubleheader.
"Haynie Jane should be joining us Monday, and Kaitlyn is working really hard to get back not just on the field but in the batter's box," Moore said. "It's going to be really exciting when we can put all the pieces together."
