Ball State Softball (4-6) won three of its five games at the Winthrop Eagle Invitational Feb. 18-20. The Cardinals defeated Towson 3-2, beat Western Carolina 7-6 and outlasted Winthrop 7-5. Ball State suffered its first loss against Robert Morris 8-5 and dropped its third game of the weekend against Albany 3-2.
Here are three takeaways from the invitational:
Walk-Off Win
After losing its first game against Robert Morris, Ball State trailed Towson 2-1 before a sacrifice fly out in the bottom of the sixth inning by sophomore shortstop Kayla Lissy allowed sophomore centerfielder Remington Ross to tie the game. In the bottom of the eighth inning, senior left fielder Faith Hensley stepped up to bat with the bases loaded. Towson senior pitcher Julia Jackson walked Hensley, advancing all baserunners, and sophomore right fielder Kaitlyn Mathews walked to home base to claim the 3-2 victory.
Comeback Cardinals
In their second game Feb. 19, the Cardinals entered the top of the seventh inning down 6-2 against Western Carolina. After a strikeout, graduate student Delanie Johnson came into pinch hit and converted a home run to cut the lead to three. With two on base, Hensley hit the game-tying home run, before an infield error allowed Lissy to score the game-winning run off of a single to give the Cardinals the 7-6 win.
Ball State Holds Off Comeback
In the final game of the Invitational, Ball State scored a run in each of the first four innings to hold a 7-1 lead against the Eagles after the fourth inning. Ball State and Winthrop each went scoreless in the fifth, but the Eagles scored two runs in the sixth and seventh innings. However, the comeback fell short as the Cardinals held on to win, sophomore left-handed pitcher Emma Eubank was credited for the win.
The Cardinals return to action in the Coach B Classic in Carbondale, Illinois, March 4-6.
Contact Nate Grubb with comments at nathaniel.grubb@bsu.edu or on Twitter @GrubbNate43.
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