ABILENE - A bases-clearing, pinch-hit triple by Bailey Reynolds with two outs in the sixth proved to be the game-winning hit Sunday as Central Arkansas escaped Abliene Christian's Poly Wells Field with a 7-6 victory.
The victory gave the first-place Bears (21-7, 9-0 Southland) a sweep of the Wildcats (5-21, 1-8 Southland) with all three games decided by two runs or less.
Central Arkansas held leads of 3-0 and 4-1 earlier in today's contest before the Wildcats produced five runs on five hits during a wild fifth inning during which they took their first lead of the game at 6-4.
ACU received a leadoff single by
Cara Hoover off starter Shivaun Landeros to begin the frame and soon benefitted from back-to-back infield errors with reliever Kayla Gomness in the circle.
Melissa Rodriguez scampered to second base when Gomness threw wildly past her first baseman, and then
Kristin Watkins reached on a wide throw by shortstop Hayley Parker, which allowed both Rodriguez and pinch runner
Lakin Carpenter to score.
Taylor Brown followed with a base hit back up the middle and
Demi McNulty reached on a bunt single to load the bases for
Peyton Hedrick, who dropped a bloop double down the right-field line to give ACU a 5-4 lead.
The Wildcats tacked on one more run vs. Gomness when McNulty scored on a ground ball to short, but their bats were soon silenced afterward by Kylee Studioso - the UCA starter who defeated them onFriday and Saturday.
Studioso struck out the two batters she faced in the fifth, pitched a 1-2-3 sixth, and struck out the side in the seventh to earn her 17th win of the spring.
The loss, unfortunately, went to
Julia Montoya, who pitched admirably for 3.0 innings in relief. She allowed just two base runners via walk and error in her first 2.0 innings of work, and was one out away in the seventh from winning her third game of the season.
Montoya gave up a leadoff single in the seventh to Sarah Bigej that just cleared the outstretched arm of Hedrick, but she kept her there at first by getting Jessie Taylor to fly out to left and striking out No. 5 batter Hannah Stirton.
On the next play, designated player Audrey Pratt slid safely into first base after third-baseman
Holly Neese bobbled the ball for a split second. Neese made a clean throw, but it was a hair too late.
Parker then drew a walk and Reynolds brought everyone home with a fly ball to left that fell in front of a diving Watkins. The ball rolled all the way to the wall, allowing Reynolds to slide safely into third.
The game was scoreless until the fourth when Taylor blasted a two-run home run to right-center off starter
Emily Seidel. The Bears came very close to going deep again three batters later, but
Brianna Barnhill robbed Parker with a catch over the right-field wall. That sacrifice fly, however, made it a 3-0 game.
The Wildcats got on the board a half inning later on
Alyson Bishoff's RBI ground ball to second, but in the top of the fifth the Bears got that run back on a Bigej home run over the batter's eye in center field.
The Wildcats return to action at Poly Wells Field Wednesday at 6 p.m. vs. Texas Arlington and will then host McNeese for a three-game series starting Friday at 4 p.m.
