Simon Elfrink
Sports Editor
Murray State softball continued to drag its feet into the 2021 season, picking up just one win in five games at the Tiger Invite in Auburn, Alabama.
The Racers played a pair of games against Auburn University on Friday, Feb. 26, followed by two games against Jacksonville University on Saturday, Feb. 27. The event ended in a single game against Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis on Sunday, Feb. 28.
Game One: Auburn
Auburn turned around from a 2-0 win against Jacksonville the day before taking on Murray State in the first game of a double header. Junior right-hander Hannah James started in the circle for the Racers while the Tigers started freshman lefty Shelby Lowe.
The offense was silent for both teams, and a long line of zeros crept across the scoreboard as both pitchers began to wrack up outs. Sophomore right-hander Jenna Veber came in to pitch in the fourth inning after James put a runner on first with a hit by pitch. That run later scored after junior catcher Aspyn Godwin doubled to right field. That was the extent of the scoring throughout the game, and the Racers lost by a meager score of 1-0.
Game Two: Auburn
James threw for the Racers again inside the circle to start the second game. Both teams’ bats remained cool for the most part, with the Tigers scoring in only one inning.
A leadoff walk in the bottom of the second set the Racers’ defense up for trouble. A flyout and a bunt later, the Tigers had runners at first and second with only one out and sophomore infielder Lindsey Garcia at the plate. Garcia delivered with a single in the right-center gap, driving in a run and putting runners at the corners. Garcia stole second during the next at-bat, and the Tigers scored again on a wild pitch to make the score 2-0. The Tigers continued to add to their light lead in the second when senior infielder Makenna Dowell ripped a single through the left side to score Garcia and give the Tigers a three-run cushion.
The Racers came up with an answer in the third inning. Freshman catcher Taylor Jackson led off with a double down the right field line. Sophomore utility player Chloe Jacque singled on a bunt, setting junior infielder Jordan Childress up with runners at the corners. The Tigers traded a pair of outs at the cost of a run when Childress grounded into a double play, pushing a run across and making the score 3-1.
The score remained as such for the remainder of the game, and the Racers completed the first day of play 0-2.
Game Three: Jacksonville
The Racers were back on the diamond at 9 a.m. on Saturday, Feb. 27, for another day of softball, this time with a double header against Jacksonville.
Slow and minimal scoring continued to be the story of the tournament, with neither team getting anything to go offensively until the fourth inning. It was Jacksonville that found the ball first, stringing together a trio of singles to load the bases with one out. Pitching for the Racers in the fourth inning was redshirt senior right-hander Taylor Makowsky, who was able to get out of the jam without too much damage. A ground out to third base allowed the Dolphins to squeeze in a run.
Jacksonville added another tally mark to the scoreboard in the bottom of the sixth when freshman Kailey Harrigan hit an infield single with one out. Harrigan stole second in the next at-bat, and an error allowed another Dolphin to reach first base unscathed. Junior catcher Madison Kennedy delivered the scoring hit with a double in the right field gap to give Jacksonville a 2-0 lead.
The Racers never got it together offensively, and once again a low-scoring game (2-0) resulted in a loss for the Racers.
Game Four: Jacksonville
By the fourth game of the series, the Racers were reeling for a win, but their bats couldn’t keep up with the Dolphins’ pitcher, redshirt senior right-hander Seana Mora. Mora pitched the entire game for the Dolphins, shutting out the Racers and wracking up six strikeouts to her name.
The Dolphins’ offense almost went seven innings without supporting its pitcher. Had it not been for a solo home run off the bat of Kennedy in the bottom of the fifth, the game would have gone into extra innings. By the end of the game, the scoreboard displayed an age-old story for the Racers, who never got their bats going in time to overcome the slim one-run lead, and fell 1-0 to the Dolphins.
Game Five: IUPUI
On Sunday, Feb. 28, the Racers geared up for the final day of play against the IUPUI Jaguars. James and Veber split the game in the pitcher’s circle, going 1.2 and 5.1 innings. The Racers’ pitchers each had a pair of strikeouts, but James allowed three of the Jaguars’ four runs.
All three of James’s allowed runs came in the second inning after a pair of walks that put freshman infielder Lauren Youngblood in the batter’s box with two outs for the Jaguars. Youngblood rose to the occasion and drove in a run with a single to center field. She then stole second base to put two runners in scoring position for freshman outfielder Jaida Speth, who kept the momentum going with a two-RBI single to center, giving the Jaguars a 3-0 lead.
The second inning continued to be an eventful one as the Racers responded with a leadoff walk by junior utility player Lindsey Carroll. Carroll advanced all the way to third on a pair of passed balls, and two more balls just out of the zone put freshman designated player Kamryn Carcich on first base. Carcich stole second base in the next at-bat to give Jackson the opportunity to drive two runs in. Jackson delivered in kind with a two-strike hit: a triple to right field which scored both runners.
Still down by one run, the Racers returned to swing in the bottom of the third inning. An error put sophomore infielder Lily Fischer on second base with no outs, and after she stole third, Carcich found herself in the middle of the scoring once again, this time on the RBI end. Carcich drove Fischer across the plate with a single ripped through the left side of the field to tie the game at three.
Now that both teams had their offense rolling, it was anyone’s game. The Jaguars made their case for victory clear with a run-scoring double in the top of the fourth, but the Racers had a powerful fourth inning of their own with a two-run home run off the bat of senior outfielder Logan Braundmeier.
Veber tookcare of the rest for the Racers, shutting down the Jaguars offense in the last innings of play. The Racers finally walked away with the victory they so desperately wanted, beating IUPUI by a final score of 5-4.
Despite ending on a high note, the Racers’ struggles at the Tiger Invite leave them with an overall record of 3-11. The Racers hope to turn things around on Friday, March 5, when they travel to UT Martin for a three-game series against the Skyhawks.
