LOUISVILLE, Ky.—The Bellarmine softball earned a split on Saturday with the Saints of Maryville University in a Great Lakes Valley Conference doubleheader at Knights Field.
Bellarmine took the opening game with senior
Katie Stamper delivering the big blow in the form of a two-run homer to lead the Knights to a 2-1 victory. Game two, however, was pretty much all Saints as Marville banged out 13 hits in taking a 6-1 victory.
In the first game, the Saints drew first blood, plating an unearned run on a sacrifice fly in the top of the fourth.
The Knights totaled just four hits in the game but used them efficiently with two of the four coming back-to-back.
Alexa Foster led off the fifth with her second hit of the game--a single up the middle, and Stamper followed with a blast that cleared the center field fence for a 2-1 lead.
Meanwhile, Bellarmine pitcher
Sabrina Fussenegger was humming along. Although she surrendered eight hits they were scattered as the sophomore hurler recorded the complete game victory while giving up no earned runs.
In game two, the Saints (25-20, 12-14 GLVC) crammed all six of their runs in the third, fourth and fifth innings, but put the pressure on from the outset, loading the bases in the first.
The visitors finally broke through with an unearned run in the third but again left the sacks loaded. Maryville rapped out five hits including a triple and a homer in the fourth to plate three runs and open up a 4-0 lead on the Knights.
The Saints added two more in the fifth to extend their advantage to 6-0. Meanwhile, the Knights (16-28, 7-19 GLVC) were collecting base hits, but like Maryville in the first game couldn't string them together for scoring opportunities. Finally, in the bottom of the seventh, Bellarmine broke into the scoring column as
Rachel Ayer and Fussenegger—who went 3-for-4 in game two—hit consecutive doubles to make the final score 6-1.
Bellarmine closes its 2018 season on Sunday with a doubleheader against Missouri-St. Louis. Prior to the first pitch at the noon, the Knights softball program will honor its four seniors:
Kaitlin Barbiere,
Lillie Nitzken, Stamper and
Marlee Tevis.
HTM BOX SCORE GAME 1
HTM BOX SCORE GAME 2
For more coverage of Bellarmine athletics, follow us on Twitter (@BUKnights), Instagram (BUKnights), Facebook (BUKnights) and the BUKnights mobile app available for iPhone and Android.