Central Missouri Box Score
Massachusetts-Lowell Box Score
The Augustana softball team lost a tight 3-2 ball game to the University of Central Missouri and bounced back with a 5-1 victory over the University of Massachusetts-Lowell in the first day of the Rebel Spring Games Thursday in Kissimmee, Fla.
Augie is now 2-11 on the season after a pair of strong pitching performances from
Kelly Ottis and
Britt Stewart, who gave up a combined 6 hits in 14 innings of work.
Game 1
Ottis (0-3) pitched 7 innings in the first game for Augie, giving up 1 earned run on 4 hits, while striking out 4 batters in a losing effort. Kristal Holland came in to pitch the sixth and seventh inning to earn the win for the Jennies.
The Vikings got on the board first in the bottom of the third inning when
Erika Wolner drove in
Taylor Kapsch on a single to make it a 1-0 game.
Central Missouri answered with a run in the top of the fifth on a suicide squeeze to tie the game and then scored another in the sixth to make it a 2-1 game. Augie then tied the game up at 2-2 as
Traci Fransen drove in
Ally Rutherford on a single in the bottom half of the sixth.
But the Jennies scored another run in the seventh inning. With 2 down, Central Missouri's Jessie Shelman delivered a single to score the go ahead run before shutting the Vikings offense down in the bottom of the seventh to improve to 11-7 on the season.
Rutherford led the way offensively for Augie, going 2-for-3 with a pair of singles, while scoring a run. Fransen also, went 2-for-3 in the game.
Game 2
Stewart (2-3) put together one of the best pitching performances of the season thus far, giving up just 1 run on 2 hits in 7 innings of work, while striking out a season-high 7 batters. Marissa Fiorentino took the loss for the River Hawks.
The Augie offense got on the board right away as
Kayla Henke drew a walk and scored on a Rutherford double. Rutherford then stole third base and scored on a passed ball to take an early 2-0 lead into the second inning.
The Vikings again scored a pair of runs in the bottom of the fifth inning as
Kelsey Kalkman had a single to lead off the inning. Stewart followed it with a double to put runners on second and third.
Then with 1 out, Henke connected on a double to score both runners to go ahead 4-0.
After giving up a run in the top of the sixth, the Vikings added an insurance run, as the River Hawks pitcher walked in a fifth run with the bases loaded.
Henke went 2-for-2 in the game with a single, double and a pair of walks, while Stewart went to 2-for-3 for the Vikings.
Augustana will continue play in the Rebel Springs Games Friday when they take on Wisconsin-Parkside at 9 a.m. and the University of New Haven at 1 p.m. in Kissimmee, Fla.
