Leavenworth, Kan.- The Spire softball team hosted the Kansas Wesleyan Coyotes on Saturday in a doubleheader, resulting in a 4-1 win and a 10-3 win. The Spires won game one 4-1 and won game two 10-3. These wins put their overall record at 19-5 and conference record at 8-4, they also hold the fifth place spot in the conference standings.
Game One
Deserae Chavez started in the circle for the Spires and had a good start for the Spires. Chavez pitched four innings, struck out two batters, gave up three hits, and had no earned runs. In the top of the fourth, KWU got on the board first, taking a 1-0 lead. The Spires had an answer in the bottom half of the sixth inning, Audrey Spellman led the inning off with a walk, and a pitch hit Alexis McDaniel in the following at-bat. After an error by the Coyotes, Saint Mary loaded the bases with no outs.
The following two batters were retired, but then Sadie McWilliams was struck by a pitch, bringing in the tying run and making the score 1-1. Alexis Hughes drove in two runners, Strandlund and McDaniel, giving the Spires a 3-1 lead. Gianna Paape followed with another single for USM, scoring their fourth and final run. Grace Rose came in for Chavez at the beginning of the fifth inning and went on to pitch the remainder of the game. Rose gave up only one hit in three innings with three strikeouts to give Saint Mary a 4-1 win.
Game Two
The Coyotes were the first team on the board again in game two with a one-run top of the first inning. Saint Mary retaliated with a six-run bottom half of the first to retake the lead. A single from Spellman led off the bottom of the first for the Spires, followed by singles from the next four Saint Mary batters. A two-run RBI double from McWilliams gave the Spires a 5-1 lead. Paape then batted McWilliams in for the last run of the inning, giving the Spires a 6-1 heading into the second inning.
In the second inning, Saint Mary retired the KWU side in order and went on to score two more runs. McDaniel had a triple in the bottom of the second, who was then driven in by a bunt from Strandlund. A double from Brinkman scored the Spire's second and final run of the inning. Saint Mary gave up two runs in the top of the third inning but held the Coyotes scoreless after that. Saint Mary posted one more run in the fifth and one run in the sixth to give them a 10-3 win over the Coyotes.
Up Next
Saint Mary will travel to play the Friends Falcons starting at 2 p.m. on Wednesday in Wichita, Kansas.
