COLUMBUS, Miss. - Mississippi University for Women softball closed the lid on its regular season games with a doubleheader split at home versus Williams Baptist University. The Owls lost the opener to the Eagles, 2-1, but bounced back to earn a convincing, 8-1, win in the second game at Don Usher Field.
Now The W – ranked sixth in this week's United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) coaches' poll – will now await the selections for the USCAA's post-season championship tournament. The W will be looking for its third-consecutive berth to the championships (there was no tournament in 2020 due to COVID). MUW finished third in 2019 and sixth in 2021, previously.
Game one on Saturday turned into a pitcher's diet between MUW senior
Amelia Stalter and the Eagles' Angel Gillette. Stalter's (4-6) lone mistake – permitting a two-run home run in the third inning – proved to be enough for her undoing in the game. She just four total hits and matched her season-high nine strikeouts in her home field finale.
The Owls lone hit in the game, came with one out in the fourth and appeared to ignite a potential big inning for the hosts. With one out,
Megan Cummins singled.
Riley Phillips and
Rylie Grisham drew back-to-back walks to load the bases.
Jaelynn Palmer struck out swinging for the second out, before
Ashton Farnell got her team's lone run batted in when she was hit by a pitch to force in a run and make it 2-1. With the bases still full if Owls,
Katie Beth Williams "K'd" to end the threat.
Game two was scoreless through two frames, until The W offense erupted for five in the third and another three in the fourth inning to go up 8-0. In the third, a two-run double by Phillips and two RBI single from Palmer – sandwiching a run scoring on a wild pitch – accounted for MUW's big outburst.
In the fourth,
Anna Sandlin drew a bases loaded walk to force in Cummins. That was followed by a
Kaylee Quimby RBI single and a groundout RBI by Farnell to make it 8-0. WBU got an unearned run in the top of the fifth for its lone tally.
Kaitlyn Parrish (5-6) went the distance in the circle. She scattered four hits and struck out four, walking just one.
Cummins went 2-for-3 and scored twice. Phillips was 1-for-2 with two RBI.
