The Buckeye State just couldn’t handle the Lipscomb Bisons softball team in the Courtyard by Marriott-Brentwood Purple and Gold Challenge this weekend at Draper Diamond at Smith Stadium.
After struggling the previous weekend, Lipscomb proved they could face adversity head on and make changes that need to be made. Lipscomb took the field on Saturday morning beating Akron 3-2.
In the circle, junior Tanner Sanders had a personal game high with 10 strike-outs. Akron’s pitcher Erin Seller received the loss, making that her second of eight decisions for the year.
With a total of three stolen bases, junior Brittany Elmore set a new personal single-game high and a team individual high. The team had a total of five stolen bases, with senior Gracey Aguirre and freshman Abby Fenichel both contributing.
“My job on the offensive end is to get on base,” Elmore said. “While I’m on base it’s to put myself in the best position for my team to score me. Stealing bases is part of the process. I’m happy that I can contribute to my team in that way. I always push myself to do more to help the team in any way possible.”
Later in the day, Lipscomb faced Dayton, keeping them scoreless. The Bisons finished the game up with a 3-0 win over the Flyers. The records continued to stack up for the Bisons as junior Kelly Young pitched her way to the win by striking out 11, making a new personal and team game high.
Elmore, Aguirre and junior Dee Baddley helped Young in the circle, each having a double. Senior Laura Dukes and Elmore’s bat stayed hot as they both rallied for two hits.
Sunday’s game brought some challenges, with a fight against weather and a duel between Dayton. Despite being two hours behind schedule, Lipscomb came ready to battle all the obstacles.
Dayton pushed a run across first in the third and another run in the fourth. Lipscomb was able to tie it up pushing the game into extra innings. It was in the eighth that the Bisons were able to take the victory. Sophomore Mimi Cartwright came up to bat with two outs and hit a walk-off single to score Elmore.
“The only thing that was running through my mind was to stay long through the ball,” Cartwright said. “I knew there was pressure with two outs but I felt more determination to get the job done than anything.”
The final score was 3-2. Lipscomb went perfect over the weekend improving their record to 8-9.
The softball team has a quick turn around as they travel to Alabama on Tuesday to take on UAB in a doubleheader beginning at 4 p.m.
Photo courtesy of Lipscomb Athletics