Box Score HATTIESBURG, Miss. – (
Tournament Page) The William Woods University softball team fell 6-1 in the first game of the NAIA World Series Opening Round to the No. 1-seeded Vanguard University (Calif.).
The Owls will face the two-seeded William Carey University (Miss.) at 1 p.m. on Tuesday, May 14, for the opening round's first elimination game.
The Owls won the coin toss to be the home team in the game. After holding VU to three up, three down in the top of the first, the Owls struck first in the bottom of the inning. Following
Ari Arnold's one-out double to shallow center field,
Emma Walker sent her home with an RBI triple to deep right-center field. Two more outs left Walker stranded on third.
In the top of the second, VU tied the game with an RBI single. They added three more in the top of the third with an RBI fielder's choice, a passed ball and an RBI single to take a 4-1 lead.
An error by VU started the bottom of the third and placed
Dacrie Depping on first.
Anna Counts reached on a bunt hit to advance Depping, but Depping was forced out at third on Arnold's fielder's choice. Walker followed with her second hit of the day to load the bases with one out.
Alli Massey reached on a fielder's choice, and VU forced Counts out at home to keep them from scoring a run. The third out came on a ground out to third, leaving three runners stranded.
The Owls forced VU to leave bases loaded in the fourth as they grabbed the final out.
In the top of the sixth,
Madison Ausfahl came in as relief to pitch for
Brittany Roady.
VU added two more runs in the top of the sixth and seventh with two RBI singles to take a 6-1 lead.
The Owls were unable to add a run in the bottom of the seventh, ending the game with the opening day loss.
Walker went 2-for-3 from the plate with a triple and one RBI. Arnold went 2-for-4 with one run scored.
Roady (14-9) pitched the first 5.0 innings. She allowed eight hits and four earned runs while walking just one. Ausfahl pitched the remaining two innings and allowed two earned runs.
