Murray State softball began their Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) season this week with a three-game clash with the Bradley Braves and then a game against the Belmont Bruins.
Murray State won the first game of a doubleheader played on Friday, March 14 against the Bradley University Braves.
Bradley jumped out to an early two-run lead and held the Racers scoreless through three innings. Murray State started to rally in the bottom of the fourth inning after an RBI single from sophomore third baseman Summer Ray was followed by three unearned runs.
Bradley was only able to score once more in the top of the sixth inning and ultimately fell to the Racers 4-3. Murray State junior Bre Haislip earned the win for the Racers, posting five hits allowed, three earned runs and three strikeouts in seven innings.
The second game of the doubleheader remained scoreless until the top of the third inning where the Braves scored three runs. Bradley added one more run in the top of the fifth inning before freshman second baseman Kenley Minor doubled to drive in a run in the bottom of the fifth to make the score 4-1.
Bradley extended its lead in the top of the sixth inning with another run, as Murray State was only able to come up with one more run for the remainder of the game. Murray State lost the second game of the doubleheader by a score of 5-2.
Freshman right fielder Katy Huels got the final game of the three-game series on Sunday, March 16 started with a triple. Sophomore Parker Holcombe drove Huels in to give the Racers a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning.
The Braves responded with a two-run double in the top of the third inning to give Bradley the lead. Bradley added two more runs onto its lead in the top of the sixth inning to widen the gap to 4-1. Murray State senior left fielder Erin Lackey earned a sacrifice groundout in the bottom of the sixth inning, driving in a run to make it a two-run game heading into the final inning.
After holding the Braves scoreless at the top of the seventh, Murray State sophomore outfielder Rylee Webb got things started with a double. Junior catcher Taylor Franzen hit a double as well to drive Webb home and make it a one-run game with the tying runner in scoring position and no outs.
Franzen was called out after a review determined she left early on a wild pitch to give the Braves their first out of the inning. A strikeout and flyout followed and the Braves won the game 4-3.
Murray State then traveled to Nashville, Tennessee to play the Belmont Bruins on Tuesday, March 18. The Bruins got out to an early lead, scoring three runs in the first inning. Belmont added four more runs in the third inning and one more in the sixth inning to ultimately win the game 8-0.
Murray State was held hitless in the loss and their only base runner came by way of a Belmont fielding error. Three of Belmont’s eight runs were unearned, as the Racers committed three errors.
Murray State’s next game is in Terre Haute, Indiana to play the Indiana State Sycamores in a three-game series from Friday, March 21 through Sunday, March 23.
